Fighting for Right
by LadyxMadonna
Summary: Kameka has asked for and been given permission to carry on with this story so keep your eyes open for her continuation!
1. The Fight

**Title: **Fighting for Right

**Disclaimer: **My name is not Lifetime TV and therefore I own none of the rights to the characters in the following story. I make no profit from the ideas of the writers or producers (I make no profit from my ideas either, but that's not the point...) Please don't sue me! I'm a student I don't have any money anyways!

**Spoilers: **None (not on purpose anyways!)

**A/N: **I just found out that Wild Card is being cancelled...how very sad. I shall attempt to amuse myself and some random readers with some fan fiction centred around Zoe and Dan...probably going to be very fluffy and PWP but hey you never know when I get writing how it'll turn out! Reviews are like chocolate, they make me most happy (no pleasurable endorphins though, but they'll do!)

Zoe flew out of the elevator, nearly tackling Dan in her rush. "Sorry," she mumbled as she hurried to her office, slamming the door behind her. Dan shook his head in confusion and turned to follow the strawberry-blond to her office.

"Hey Zoe?" Dan tapped gently on her door. "Zoe can I come in?" He tested the doorknob and finding it unlocked he let himself in quietly, not wanting to frighten her. Zoe sat slumped over her desk, her coat and purse flung haphazardly onto a chair. "Zoe?" Dan whispered, "are you okay?" Dan approached her softly, lifting her belongings from the chair and settling himself into it. Zoe chose that moment to look up at him and his heart broke to see the pain in her soft grey-green eyes. "Zoe what is it? You're scaring me."

"I had a fight with Taylor this morning," her voice was barely audible and Dan leaned in so he could hear her. "I told her she couldn't stay out past curfew to go to a party tonight and she blew up at me." Zoe paused to regain her composure, something she was having a hard time holding on to. "She told me she hated me and she wished that I'd never come here to take care of her and Hannah and Cliff..." Zoe dissolved into tears, sobs wracking her light frame. Dan stood from his seat and moved behind the desk. He knelt down, spinning Zoe in her chair to face him, and pulled her into his arms.

"Oh Zoe she didn't mean it! She was just angry, it'll be okay, I promise." Dan stroked her back, attempting to console the distraught woman. Zoe finally calmed in his arms and then he felt her tense. She pushed him away the moment she realized what she was doing, too afraid of letting him get close. Dan stood and walked back to his seat on the far side of her desk, heaving a sigh as he did, realizing he had pushed her too fast. "Are you going to be okay?" he asked tentatively, testing the waters and trying not to frighten her into retreating. "It's a slow day, you can take off if you want. I'm sure M won't mind." He silently urged her to go home, knowing she didn't need the stress of a tough day on the job. Zoe contemplated his idea for a few moments before deciding that it probably was best if she left. She knew she wouldn't get any work done anyways, not with Taylor on her mind. She nodded to Dan, picking up her purse and coat and heading for the elevators, only to be intercepted by M.

"And where are you off to Ms. Busiek?" questioned M accusingly.

"I..." Zoe started, only to be interrupted by Dan.

"She's helping me with a case M. We're just on our way out so whatever it is that you need, can it wait?" Dan thanked his lucky stars he was good at thinking on his feet.

"Fine but I want both of you in my office at 9:30am sharp tomorrow. Clear?"

"As crystal M." the elevator chimed, signalling it's arrival, "Now we have to go, see you later M." Dan grabbed Zoe's wrist and led her onto the waiting elevator. Zoe's mind was still trying to process what had just happened.

"Uh Dan? What exactly was that? I thought you said M wouldn't mind if I took the day off. Is there a big case or something you're hiding from me?" Zoe meant for her words to come lightly, but as she spoke she recognized the accusatory tone of her voice. She mentally kicked herself for questioning Dan's motives, she knew he was just trying to be friendly.

"No Zoe, I'm not hiding anything from you. M had that look in her eyes and I knew she wasn't going to be in the best mood so I figured it was best to just pretend you were helping me out rather than try to explain anything to her." Dan explained, placing his hand on the small of Zoe's back and gently guiding her out of the elevator as it came to a halt in the lobby. They approached Dan's car and he felt Zoe's back muscles tense under his palm. "Want a ride?" he asked, not sure she should be driving considering her emotional state. She nodded and he opened the passenger door for her, clicking it shut after he was sure she was safely in. He walked to the driver's side and climbed in, starting the car as he did. They drove to Zoe's in a tense silence and as they pulled up Dan parked the car and climbed out, following after Zoe towards the door.

Zoe whirled around as she reached the door, a few stray tears running down her cheeks, "Dan you don't need to follow me, I can get inside my own house you know." Dan winced at her harsh tone.

"I know that Zoe. I just wanted to make sure you were okay, which obviously you are not." Dan stopped just short of the porch, waiting Zoe's permission before he escorted her the rest of the way into the house. He was determined to make sure she relaxed. Zoe sighed as she turned back to the door, unlocking it and entering, leaving it partly open as permission for Dan to follow. Zoe jumped when Dan swang the door shut and she quickly wiped away the tears on her cheeks. "C'mon Zoe. I'll make you some tea okay? You need to relax for awhile," Dan said as he led her towards the couch. Zoe sank to the couch gratefully and listened to the muted sounds of Dan rummaging around in the kitchen.

Dan moved around the kitchen throwing open drawers and cupboards in an attempt to find all the required ingredients for Zoe's tea. Dan had just removed the sugar bowl from the cupboard as the kettle whistled, signalling that it was ready. He quickly poured a mug of tea and went to join Zoe on the couch.


	2. The Reconciliation

**Disclaimer: **See first chapter.

**A/N: **Not exactly sure where I'm going with this...you'll find out when I do! Reviews are still like chocolate (but they don't taste as good). Stick with me...I'll get to the fluffiness soon enough (I promise!)...words in italics are thoughts of characters! I know I got the "looks like a tornado threw up in here" from someone if it's you let me know and I'll give you credit!

Dan entered the living room with the steaming cup of tea only to find that Zoe had fallen asleep. He smiled at the sight, she looked so peaceful and angelic lying there until he noticed the fairly uncomfortable position she was in. Dan set the mug down on the table and contemplated how to go about making Zoe more comfortable, eventually deciding that she would be most comfortable in bed, which meant he was going to have to carry her there. He moved quietly, gently sliding an arm under her neck and knees and slowly straightening, swaying slightly as he regained his equilibrium. He nearly yelped when he felt Zoe's arms snake around his neck as she unconsciously snuggled closer into his embrace.

He made his way slowly over to the stairs, trying his best not to wake her as he mounted the stairs and toed open the door to her bedroom. _Looks like a tornado threw up in here! _Dan thought to himself, chuckling softly, as he picked his way around discarded clothing on Zoe's bedroom floor. He layed Zoe softly down on the unmade bed, removing her shoes and pulling the blankets up around her. He smiled as she squirmed into a comfortable position on her bed, sighing softly as she drifted deeper into sleep. Dan kissed her forehead softly and the pulled the curtains shut and left the door open a crack as he left the room

Dan went to his car to grab some case files so he could get something done while he waited for Zoe to wake up. Before he knew it a clock chimed three o'clock meaning that the kids would be getting out of school in just a few minutes. Dan considered waking Zoe, and made it to the door of her room, peeking in to see if she was awake, before deciding to go get the kids himself.

Dan scribbled a note and left it on the table as he walked out the door, Zoe's keys in hand so he could lock it behind him.

"Mr. Lennox!" cried an excited Hannah. "What are you doing here?"

"Well it's good to see you too Hannah," he said, leaning down to gently tug on the bubbly blond's pigtails. "Your aunt Zoe isn't feeling too well so I thought I'd come get you guys and stay with you until she's feeling a little better." Dan hated lying to Hannah, even if it was just a small distortion of the truth but he didn't feel like he had a choice. After he managed to round up Cliff and Taylor he brought them home, warning them to be quiet because Zoe had yet to wake up. He sent them upstairs to do their homework and noticed Taylor lingering as her brother and sister bounded up the stairs.

"Aunt Zoe isn't really sick is she Mr. Lennox?" said Taylor. It was more of a statement than a question.

"No Taylor she's not," Dan replied.

"She's really mad at me isn't she? She's not going to leave us is she? I didn't mean the stuff I said...I know Mom would've done the same thing. I really screwed this up for us. If she leaves we won't have anyone anymore!" Taylor's eyes were filled with fear and unshed tears. Dan pulled the small brunette into a hug,

"She's not going anywhere Taylor, I promise. She's not really mad either, just hurt. All she wants is what's best for all of you and this morning she felt like a failure." He released his hold on Taylor and she smiled through her tears at him.

"Thanks Mr. Lennox. I'll talk to her when she gets up." Taylor turned and followed the path of her siblings up the stairs.

Zoe turned over, stretching like a cat and yawning. She heard movement in the hall and turned to see what time it was as she was still in a sleepy haze she hadn't yet remembered that Dan had brought her home from the office earlier in the day. _5:48pm? _Zoe wondered, the earlier events of the day filtering through the fog, _Oh crap the kids! _She launched herself from bed and raced downstairs to find Hannah and Taylor watching TV and Cliff setting the table for dinner.

Hannah looked up from her place on the couch, "Aunt Zoe!" she cried, running over to give her aunt a hug, "are you feeling better now? Mr. Lennox picked us up from school and now he's making dinner and it looks really good! I'm hungry are you hungry Aunt Zoe? I have to show you my spelling quiz after supper, I got perfect!" The words tumbled out of the little girl's mouth as she hugged her aunt's waist.

"Yes Hannah, I feel much better." Zoe's eyes drifted to Taylor, who was sitting on the couch watching the display of affection by her little sister. Zoe saw the look in her eyes and sighed quietly, expecting another blow-out later that night.

"Let's go!" called Dan, "dinner's ready!" The kids raced into the dining room and settled themselves into their seats. Zoe was not far behind, her stomach growling reminded her that she hadn't eaten anything all day. "Hey Zoe," Dan said quietly, "feeling better?" he asked, giving her a knowing look. She nodded and sat in the chair he had pulled out for her. Dan served them all and Hannah kept them entertained with her endless chatter throughout the meal, stopping only to eat now and then. Both Zoe and Taylor were quiet through the meal and as Dan cleaned up after the meal he heard Taylor ask her aunt if she could talk to her in private.

Taylor and Zoe walked into Zoe's room, Taylor pushing the door shut behind them. She turned to find her aunt seated on the edge of her bed, waiting for her to start talking. "Look aunt Zoe, about earlier...I really didn't mean anything I said I know Mom would've made the same decision and I'm really glad you're here, we all are and please don't leave because of me! If we didn't have you we wouldn't have anyone and we don't want you to leave. I'm sorry aunt Zoe I shouldn't have freaked out like that earlier and I really shouldn't have said most of the things I did because none of them are true...oh Aunt Zoe can you ever forgive me?" the desperation was evident in Taylor's voice as she begged for forgiveness and eyes were filled with tears again.

"Taylor you won't be getting rid of me that easily," Zoe smiled and pulled her niece into a hug. "I love you guys and I'm not going anywhere. And yes I forgive you for the things you said earlier, I know you were mad." Taylor sniffled and smiled up at her aunt. "Now we better get back downstairs before they miss us." Zoe wrapped her arm around Taylor's shoulders as they walked back down the stairs to be greeted by a very excited Hannah with a bowl of ice-cream in one hand and her spelling quiz in the other.


	3. Tripping

**Disclaimer: **see Chapter 1

**A/N: **Sorry about not updating recently but there was a death in my family and the last week was crazy busy. This is my new distraction..fun )...ok still not sure where this is going but I'm working on it! Santa Catalina Island is real but the Amon L'isa Resort and Spa is not. (Have I been reading too much Dan Brown or what?). I kinda sorta stole/borrowed Danielle Anderson's idea (_Honeymoon Assignment) _by accidentfor this bit of the story...I hope she doesn't mind!

"Aunt Zoe, look!" Hannah bounded up the stairs to meet her sister and aunt, "I got perfect and Mr. Lennox let me have ice-cream as a treat for doing so well!" Zoe smiled at her energetic little niece, squeezing Taylor's shoulders once more before allowing herself to be led down the stairs.

The remainder of the night passed uneventfully, everyone gathered on the couch to watch Shrek 2 for quite possibly the millionth time. Dan and Zoe sat at opposite ends of the couch with the three children squished in between them. As the night wore on Hannah fell asleep on Dan and Zoe decided it was time for the children to go to bed. After battling the older two she ushered them upstairs, followed by Dan who was carrying Hannah. Zoe ensured Taylor and Cliff went to bed before following Dan to Hannah's room. Zoe softly pushed open the door and watched as Dan carefully lay Hannah into bed and covered her up, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead, not unlike what he had done to Zoe earlier in the day. Zoe felt her heart well up at the tender sight, _I wonder if Dan would treat me like that, _she wondered, quickly reigning in her thoughts before she had to face Dan. Zoe sighed softly, so softly that she thought he wouldn't hear it but Dan turned to face her, "Hey you shouldn't sneak up on a guy like that. You could give him a heart attack," he whispered.

"Funny, Dan" Zoe made a face and walked over to give her niece a kiss goodnight, accidentally brushing Dan's arm with her own in the process. She pulled back sharply from the touch and Dan shook his head, stepping out of the room and going back downstairs. _Why does she always do that? _Dan wondered as he moved about the living room, collecting his case files, _She's so frustrating sometimes..._Dan heard a noise behind him and turned to find Zoe standing at the bottom of the stairs. "I'll see you in the morning Zoe. Don't forget - M's office at 9:30, don't be late." He gathered the rest of his stuff and headed for the door.

"I - I just...uh...Dan?" Zoe stuttered and Dan turned to find a very flustered Zoe still standing at the bottom of the stairs. He waited for her to continue, not willing to play her games anymore this night. "Thanks, Dan. For everything. See you tomorrow." Dan nodded and shut the door quietly behind him on his way out. Unknown to him his beautiful blond partner had followed him to the door and was currently sitting in a sobbing heap on the floor.

The Next Morning - 9:56am:

Zoe ran from the elevator for the second time in as many days skidding to a halt inside M's office and throwing herself into a chair. "Sorry I'm late but Hannah forgot her homework at home and we had to turn around and go all the way back to get it."

"Just don't let it happen again Zoe," M replied then she turned to address both Zoe and Dan, "Alright I'm going to get right to the point here. I need an undercover team to investigate an exclusive honeymoon resort on Santa Catalina Island and I've chosen you to be my honeymooners and I will NOT accept no for an answer, got it?" The two nodded, knowing there was no use fighting with M when she had made a decision. "Okay. You will leave tomorrow morning at 11:05 on American Airlines flight 161. I went through a lot of trouble to get you two into this resort as they usually only allow reservations with proof of marriage but they made an exception because I told them that your licence was caught up in some bureaucratic backlog. So that means you need to play up the newly wed thing real well or you'll get busted. And you had better not get busted!" M had never been one to meddle in the affairs of others but she was sick of the sexual tension between Dan and Zoe. They needed to get their relationship, or lack thereof, decided on sometime soon! When she had received the call to investigate the _Amon L'isa Resort and Spa _she knew she was sending Dan and Zoe no matter what.

The two soon to be "honeymooners" were able to avoid each other successfully for most of the rest of the day, running into each other only when they were leaving. After a few tense moments in the elevator Dan broke the silence, "So Zoe I'll pick you up at 8 tomorrow morning okay?"

"Yeah sure that's fine Dan," Zoe uttered as she moved swiftly from the elevator, her heart pounding and the feeling of arousal that she frequently got around Dan overtook her body. _Why do I have to be so damn hormonal around him! He's just a coworker! He's not interested in you that way and even if he was there's no way you'd have the guts to do anything about it! _Zoe consciously changed her train of thought to think about what she needed to bring with her on the surprise work/vacation.

8:13am

"Coming Dan!" Zoe called, waving to him before turning to kiss the kids goodbye. "Be good while I'm gone guys, no wild parties and don't burn the house down." Zoe made her way to Dan's car, where he loaded her luggage into the back alongside his.

"Geeze Zoe how much do you need for a week of vacation? One suitcase wasn't enough so you brought three!" Dan was incredulous, _did she pack her whole wardrobe or something? _He wondered. Zoe grinned cheekily and hopped into the passenger seat without a word. A tense drive to the airport was followed by a tense wait for the plane which was followed by a tense plane ride. As they deplaned Zoe grabbed Dan's hand, intertwining their fingers, to begin to build their facade as loving husband and wife. Dan's thumb unconsciously stroked the back of Zoe's hand as they waited for their baggage and she reciprocated by moving closer to him so that their shoulders touched. After retrieving their baggage the two strolled out into the bright tropical sunshine to find a black limousine awaiting them.

"Welcome to Catalina, may I take your bags?" The short chauffer greeted the pair with a bright smile. "We will be driving to Willow Cove so please make yourselves comfortable, there is a phone in the back which you can use to call me should you require anything. My name is Jacques, by the way, but you may call me Jack." Dan helped Zoe into the limo's backseat before climbing in after her.

As the door was shut behind them Dan said, "Zoe I think we need to talk."

"I know Dan. When we get to the resort okay?" She leaned against his shoulder, quickly falling asleep. Dan smiled down at the sight of a sleeping Zoe. He leaned down and softly kissed her forehead. Little did he realize, Zoe had not fallen asleep as quickly as he thought and she felt the kiss and nearly melted into his arms. _Oh God! Dan just kissed me! _Zoe sighed contentedly and drifted off into sleep filled with dreams of her and Dan doing some very erotic things...

**TBC...**

**A/N 2: **Okay I have piles of homework to do so I may not get to update until next week but I'll try!


	4. Confessions of the Heart edited

**Disclaimer: **see the first chapter

**A/N: **It's getting so close to romance! Thanks for sticking with me! Thanks for the reviews and encouragement so far...keep 'em coming!

* * *

"Zoe...Zoe..." Dan nudged the sleeping woman. "C'mon Zoe wake up." Zoe groaned as her eyes fluttered open. A blush immediately spread across her cheeks as she processed the dream she had just awoken from. The dream had involved her, Dan and strawberries with whipped cream. She cleared her throat and moved into a more comfortable position, turning to look at Dan as she did so. "I almost forgot about these," he extended a small black velvet box towards her. The ring on Dan's finger did not go unnoticed as she took the box from his hand. Zoe tentatively opened the box to find a beautiful diamond and pink sapphire engagement ring set in white gold and a simple white gold and diamond wedding band that perfectly matched Dan's. "They were my grandparents rings," he explained quietly.

"Dan...they're beautiful," a solitary tear escaped Zoe's eye as Dan slid the bands onto her left hand. He reached up to cup her face and wipe away the tear tenderly. Zoe blushed again at his affectionate gesture, unconsciously pushing her cheek into his hand and allowing her eyes to slip closed. This time it was Dan who pulled away first, knowing that they needed to talk before they did anything more intimate than holding hands.

"Mr. and Mrs. Lennox? We've arrived," their driver's voice crackled over the intercom. Moments later the door was opened and Dan exited the limo back into the bright California sun. Dan turned back and took Zoe's hand to help her from the vehicle. "Your bags will be brought up to your room for you. The front desk is that way," the driver waved int the direction of the main entrance doors, effectively dismissing the couple. Dan reached for Zoe's hand and intertwined their fingers as she had done earlier and began to lead her towards the door.

"Hello!" a chipper desk attendant greeted them, "you're Mr. and Mrs. Lennox right? Welcome to the _Amon L'isa_!" A moment of flying fingers over a keyboard later Dan was presented with the key to their room, "enjoy your stay!" Zoe had been unable to tear her eyes away from the incredible architecture of the building since they had arrived and was only jolted back when Dan gently tugged her hand, leading her towards their room. A few moments later Dan was leading her into an incredibly beautiful and very spacious room with one luxurious king bed as the centrepiece. Zoe gasped at the sight and tossing an evil grin Dan's way she shook her hand free of his and launched herself onto the bed.

"Oh Dan it's soooo comfortable!" He grinned and followed her over, laying gingerly down beside her. Dan nearly jumped from his skin when a bellhop knocked on the door, signalling the arrival of their luggage. After the bellhop left, handsomely tipped, Dan shut and locked the door and turned to find Zoe standing with her forehead pressed against the window, admiring the gorgeous view of the water. "Such a pretty view, isn't it Dan?" she asked.

"Sure is," Dan agreed, blushing when she turned to catch him staring at her, eyes nowhere near looking out the window. "So, we're here now. Let's talk." Dan walked to the sliding door next to Zoe and stepped out onto the balcony, holding the door for her to follow. "Okay Zoe, we're going to be spending the next week together here and that means we're going to be sleeping in the same bed, unless of course you were planning on me sleeping on the floor." Dan smiled at Zoe, trying his best to put her at ease. Zoe sank into a chair as the realization that she would be sleeping in the same bed as a guy she was constantly aroused around. _Great _she thought to herself _I just know I'm going to end up embarrassing myself or Dan sometime this week and of course it has to be in front of him, the guy I'm practically in love with!...Woah where_ _did that come from? I love Dan? Oh God this is gonna be one loooong week. _Zoe sighed, "Hey Zoe...Earth to Zoe you still with me?"

"Wha...oh sorry Dan, just thinking." Zoe swallowed, hoping he wouldn't notice the blush on her cheeks. "Same bed is fine. We're supposed to be married right?" Zoe silently cursed herself for agreeing to sleep with him.

"Okay good, but I asked if we could talk about...you know..._us_. And what exactly 'us' is and where it's going." Zoe nodded her consent. "I don't really know how to say this Zoe so I'm just going to say it...I'm attracted to you Zoe. You're beautiful, intelligent, compassionate and a million other adjectives and everything about you makes me want you. I realize this isn't the best time to be telling you this considering we're about to spend a week alone together in a romantic hotel for work but I thought you should know. You don't have to say anything, or decide whether you feel the same way or not but that's how I feel and I know it's not going to change." Dan had been pacing the length of the balcony during his confession and stopped only when he felt Zoe grab his wrist.

"Dan you're making me nervous. Sit down." _Okay so what do I say? I know I feel the same way about him but if I tell him then I'll have to admit to him my deepest and darkest secret that not even my sister knew! _"Dan...I-I um..." Zoe blushed, _Just do it! _She chastised herself, "I like you too Dan but there's something I need to tell you before we do...anything and I'm not sure I'm ready to talk about it right now."

"It's okay Zoe. We can take this as slow as you want." Dan smiled across the table at her, "I don't ever want to do anything you're not comfortable with Zoe." He reached for her hand and kissed it, "now whaddya say we go swimming?" The child-like exuberance Dan displayed made Zoe laugh, allowing her to relax and let her guard down. After a day of swimming and suntanning on the beach the couple headed back to the hotel to change for dinner. Zoe exited the bathroom to find Dan in a fancy suit, mouth agape at her outfit. She twirled like a ballerina, the gauzy black dress swirling around her thighs.

"You like?" she asked, reaching around to push a bobby pin deeper into the strawberry blond updo. Dan nodded, "Close your mouth Daniel." He blushed and did as he was told, rising from his chair and walking over to her.

"Close your eyes," he whispered, "I have a surprise for you." Zoe closed her eyes obediently and felt Dan's presence behind her back. A moment later she felt something hit her collarbone lightly and smiled as Dan's hands fumbled with the clasp of her gift behind her neck. "There," he said, "perfect." His hands rested on her shoulders as she opened her eyes and looked into the mirror, a delicate platinum chain suspended a pink sapphire and diamond butterfly charm. Her eyes welled up with tears,

"Oh Dan it's beautiful," she breathed. "Thank you," Dan smiled and offered his arm to her as they proceeded to the dining room. After a sumptuous meal the couple returned to their room for the night, both tense as they prepared to spend their first night together. This time Zoe emerged from the bathroom wearing silk pyjama pants and a matching camisole, again taking Dan's breath away. Dan was lying on the bed in boxers and a t-shirt, his hair slightly ruffled from the pillows and all Zoe could think was that he'd never looked more sexy. Zoe flicked off the overhead light as she made her way to the bed, the feeling of arousal growing with each step she took. "Dan?" she questioned. "About what I said earlier, about needing to tell you about something else..."

"Zoe don't worry about it. I can wait until you're ready to talk about it, I don't want to pressure you into anything." Dan looked into her eyes and saw fear as she lay down beside him.

"I wanna tell you Dan. I just- It's hard to talk about." Zoe's eyes were filled with tears again, her voice shaking as she spoke. Dan moved closer to her, wiping away her tears and gently kissing her forehead.

"It's okay Zoe. Just relax." He soothed, brushing her hair back from her face.

"Dan when I worked in Vegas I dated this guy, Mike. He seemed really nice, we went out a few times and had fun but by our fourth date he started pressuring me to have sex with him. I didn't want to so I kept coming up with excuses but one night he invited me up to his place for coffee. He hadn't broached the subject of sex all night so I assumed he'd given up but when I got up to his apartment he locked the door and tried to rape me. All he ended up doing was beating the crap out of me before the neighbours called the cops." The tears were flowing freely now and Dan pulled Zoe into his arms, trying to calm her fears. "The cops came and broke the door down. I don't remember much, he knocked me out and they said he was starting to tie me up when they got there. They arrested him and found out his real name, Luke McDonough...he was wanted for rape in three states. I don't even like to think about what would have happened if his neighbours hadn't been suspicious. I-I still get scared sometimes and I used to get really awful nightmares, they're better now but I still - I'm still scared sometimes."

"Oh Zoe, honey. I wish I could have been there to protect you. You didn't deserve that Zoe. You are a beautiful, intelligent woman and any man would be lucky to have you. Get some sleep okay? We've got a lot of work to do tomorrow." Zoe nodded and snuggled closer into his chest as he pulled that blankets up around them. "G'night Zoe," Dan leaned down to kiss the crown of her head softly but met her lips when she turned her face up to look at him. He pulled away quickly, "Zoe I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have done that. I..." Dan was silenced with Zoe's index finger pressed to his lips.

"It's okay Dan," she removed her finger and stretched up to kiss him goodnight. _Oh my God I'm kissing Dan! _Her synapses were firing, lighting her nerve endings on fire as he returned the kiss. She pulled away reluctantly and snuggled into his chest, falling to sleep.


	5. Perchance to Dream

**Disclaimer**: still in the first chapter where it's always been

**A/N: **Remind me again why I chose to have them on a case? That means I actually have to write a case in! Ugh bad idea...I should stick to PWP stories, it would make my life so much easier. Well here it goes, I hope it turns out okay! (Remember – reviews chocolate)...

Dan awoke to an unfamiliar weight on his chest, he inhaled deeply as he tried to place who or what it was. The sweet smell of jasmine and vanilla invaded his thoughts, _oh...right...Zoe._ Dan smiled down at the sleeping woman, admiring how peaceful she looked, safe in his arms. Zoe chose that moment to make a noise Dan could only relate to a purr in the back of her throat as she struggled from sleep.

_Mmmm...this is nice. Wait...who am I sleeping with! Oh my God! _Zoe tried to calm herself, taking a few cleansing breaths, the scent she knew so well permeating her sleepy mind. _Okay it's Dan...wait what did we do last night? Better yet why the hell am I sleeping with Dan? _Zoe's mind processed, _Right, M sent us on a case and we're supposed to be newlyweds... we didn't do what most newlyweds do on their wedding night did we! _Zoe's mind raced as she fought to remember the night before, _well I'm dressed, that's a good sign...okay think Zoe. We went to dinner, I had a couple glasses of wine we came back here and...oh yeah...I told him didn't I? Well that probably ended any hope of having a relationship with him. I mean what kind of guy is gonna want to be with a woman who is so afraid of having a relationship with a guy she pushes him away constantly? Although he did kiss me...but then he apologised. Then I kissed him and I **think** he kissed me back..._

"You awake Zoe?" Dan nudged her softly. Zoe nodded, looking up into his eyes. "Whaddya say we get up and have some breakfast before we have to get down to work?" _Why does she look so frightened? I know she had a little to drink last night but not a whole lot...she doesn't think I took advantage of her does she? What if I did? I mean she was probably a little bit drunk and she'd just told me something she hadn't told anyone before and it turns her into an emotional train wreck and I go and kiss her...great job Dan. _Zoe stretched her arms above her head as she sat up.

"Dan about last night..." she started, only to be cut off by Dan,

"Zoe I'm so sorry...You bared your soul to me and I kissed you while you were emotional. I shouldn't have done that and I know you might think I took advantage of you and I'm sorry, I never meant for it to happen like that..." Dan was once again silenced with Zoe's finger to his lips.

"Dan it's okay. I don't think you took advantage of me but I need to know...did you just kiss me out of pity for what happened or was it something else?" Zoe couldn't meet his eyes, she was too afraid of what she might see there.

"Oh Zoe..." Dan sighed, pulling himself into a sitting position, "Zoe that was most definitely not a kiss out of pity. I kissed you because you're a smart, beautiful woman who trusted me with a secret she was afraid of. And I kissed you because I think I'm falling in love with you Zoe. That's why I kissed you..." Dan placed his fingers under Zoe's chin, tipping her face up so he could look into her eyes. He saw the tears making her eyes sparkle as she leaned in to his embrace. She sighed and he felt her muscles relax as he gently massaged her back. "C'mon we gotta get up Zoe..."

"Don wanna...too comfy" she mumbled into his chest, yelping when he scooped her up and stood. She threw her arms around his neck for safety. "Dan! What are you doing!" she couldn't help but giggle as he planted a kiss on her forehead before gently setting her on her feet.

"Getting you out of bed," Dan replied with a grin, Zoe's arms still linked around his neck. He looked down into her eyes, slowly inching their lips closer and giving her ample time to pull away if she wasn't ready. He watched her eyes slip closed and her lips part slightly,

"Dannn..." she breathed his name. "Please..." she hated the way he was drawing this out. _Maybe he was lying earlier. Maybe he really_ _did just kiss me out of pity before..._ All coherent thought left Zoe's mind as his lips met hers. She moaned softly, allowing him to snake his arms around her waist and pull her closer. They stood there, making out like a couple of teenagers, hands roaming everywhere on the other's body. Dan's lips left hers as he trailed kisses down her jaw, pausing to kiss the tender skin of her neck before stopping and resting his forehead against hers. "That was..." Zoe's mind was clouded with passion and she couldn't for the life of her come up with an adjective to fit their kiss. It was so different from their previous kisses. Those had been wild and rushed but this...it had been slow and sweet and so passionate Zoe had felt like her legs were about to give out.

Dan chuckled, "You took the words right out of my mouth. Now we really do have work to do so why don't you jump in the shower and I'll order us some room service okay?" Zoe nodded, releasing her grip of his neck and walked, albeit unsteadily, towards the bathroom.

Zoe emerged from the bathroom half an hour later in a cute flowery halter dress to find Dan sitting on the balcony reading a book. "Whatcha readin?" she asked as she walked barefoot onto the balcony. Dan smiled at her, tossing the book across the table so she could see it, "_The Da Vinci Code_? What's it about?"

"I'll explain over breakfast okay? I'm gonna jump in the shower." Dan rose from his seat, pausing long enough to kiss the top of Zoe's head before he made his way inside. Zoe sat the book down on the table and leaned back in her chair. Before she knew it Dan was back at her side, along with a cart full of goodies. Zoe's let her curiosity get the best of her and she started pulling the covers off the dishes. To her delight she discovered pancakes along with bowls of fresh fruit and whipped cream, she blushed slightly at the sight of strawberries and whipped cream, her dream from the limo flooding back. "And what are you blushing about?" asked Dan, eyes dancing as they always did when he flirted with Zoe.

Zoe's blush deepened when she realized she had been caught staring at the strawberries and whipped cream and would now have to explain herself to Dan. "Well I uh...I just..." Zoe stuttered trying to find the right words. Dan laughed,

"It's okay Zoe. You don't have to tell me." Being a gentleman meant Dan would never bring up the idea of strawberries and whipped cream again unless he was sure she would be completely comfortable but he stored her interesting reaction in the back of his mind for later use. "C'mon, eat. We've got lots to do." Dan smiled at Zoe as he sat, trying to get her to relax a little more and kicking himself for questioning her blushing and making her go back to the shy and withdrawn Zoe he was used to.

"So what's your book about?" Zoe asked again. Dan began to explain it, telling her he was only a chapter in so he didn't really have a good grasp of it yet. "Can I borrow it when you're done? It's been awhile since I read a good book."

"I'll do you one better Zoe. We can read it together this week okay?"

"Ooh sounds fun!" Zoe took a bite of the pancakes, it had not escaped Dan that she had purposely avoided both the strawberries and whipped cream. "Mmm! I think these are the best pancakes I've ever eaten!" The couple plowed through the pancakes and fruit and once their hunger was sated they prepared for their day of investigating. "So we're looking for someone who's been blackmailing newlyweds out of money. Do we know how he does it?"

Dan smiled as he watched the new Zoe he'd been getting to know dissolve into his partner Zoe, he made a pact with himself to get the new Zoe to show herself again later. "From what M said the clients were reluctant to talk about it, but she told me it involves a secluded cove on the beach and some risque photos." Zoe raised an eyebrow at his comment.

"So you're telling me _we _have to get ourselves into a 'risque' situation on the beach and hope someone takes pictures so they can try to extort money from us?" Zoe was incredulous.

"Not necessarily. If we can find a couple who is in that position we might be able to avoid that." Dan squirmed in his seat, knowing full well that there was very little chance that that would ever happen.

**A/N 2: **Ugh I'm having the hardest time figuring out a case for them that I can write out quickly so I can get to more fluffiness! Any ideas on where I can take this? I'll update again soon...I hope...


	6. Imprints in the Sand

**Disclaimer:** If you haven't figured it out yet you don't get to know...

**A/N: **I'm so lost as to where to go with this story...I hate writer's block...I hate plots too, stories shouldn't need plots (but then if I wrote PWP stories it might –might? Who am I kidding?– get smutty so it's probably best I attempt to toss some semblance of plot into my stories). Okay enough rambling...on with the story! Oh by the way one metre is like 3.2 feet (I'm Canadian so sue me – haha).

* * *

Dan wrapped his arm around Zoe's waist as they walked along the beach, pulling her closer to him, "Want to rest for a bit?" he whispered into her ear, inhaling the sweet scent of her shampoo mixed with the hibiscus she'd tucked into her hair. Dan had noticed her yawns as they walked along the beach and he'd seen more than one guy give him a knowing look or thumbs up as they passed. After some snooping early in the morning the two had found the secluded cove that was the site of the blackmailing photographer. Dan pulled Zoe towards the shade of a palm tree just metres from the cove that they had set up surveillance on. He spread a blanket on the sand sitting with his back against the tree trunk and motioning for Zoe to sit between his legs. She dropped down to the blanket, squirming into a comfortable position with Dan as he began to rub her shoulders and back, intent on working out all the kinks. 

"Mmm...that feels _incredible_ Dan! Where did you learn to do this?" Zoe felt all the stress melting away as Dan caressed her back and shoulders, gently massaging the muscles. Dan just smiled and continued his loving ministrations on her back. Zoe leaned back into his chest as he finished the massage, his arms wrapping around her waist protectively as she drifted to sleep.

"Zoe...Come on Zoe you have to wake up now honey," _Did I just call her honey? _Dan whispered softly into her ear. "Zoe..." he felt her shift in his arms as she woke up.

"Can't we just stay here?" her voice still full of sleep as she looked up at him.

"Unfortunately no...We have work to do and I just saw a couple head into the cove." Zoe nearly leapt from his embrace,

"Hurry up Dan!" she hissed softly. Dan just smiled and shook his head, folding the blanket. _Zero to sixty in ten seconds flat that woman,_ he thought to himself as he watched her creep towards the cove. Dan followed her, placing his hand on the small of her back as he reached her side, steering her into the tree line so they wouldn't be seen. They watched the couple set out a blanket and sit down, looking around furtively to see if anyone else was around. Satisfied that they were alone the couple began a passionate make-out session on their blanket. Zoe flushed with embarrassment and buried her head in Dan's shoulder to avoid having to watch.

"Zoe," Dan nudged her, "look on the water. See that little cave? I think there's someone in there in a boat." They watched for another few minutes, seeing a small kayak bobbing in the darkness of the cave with momentary flashes of light when a photo was taken before they decided they should try to get to the cave so they could catch their mystery photographer. Dan reached for Zoe's hand, pulling her along behind him as they wound their way through the trees stopping just before the shoreline. Dan felt Zoe's grip on his hand tighten as they heard the distinct sounds of the other couple's lovemaking drifting across the beach and he turned to find her biting her lower lip, eyes squeezed shut in embarrassment. "C'mere Zoe," he whispered, opening his arms to her pulling her into his chest and trying to block out the sounds. Dan was fighting the arousal that was building inside him, trying to stay strong and impartial for Zoe, while she fought the same feelings, his embrace only intensifying everything.

"Dannn," she moaned his name.

"I know Zoe. Believe me I know," he replied locking his eyes on the cave as he saw the bow of the kayak begin to exit. "Zoe I think our photographer is going to make a break for it." Dan pulled a cell phone from his pocket and phoned the local police to arrest the blackmailing photographer. "Let's follow him Zoe. We'll keep him busy until the cops get here." Dan wrapped his arm around Zoe's shoulders as she shivered in the evening breeze. The pair walked along the shoreline following the kayak as it approached the now quiet lovers.

"Sir? Ma'am?" the voice from the kayak called, "I believe I may have some photos you would like to see." The photographer had extricated himself from his kayak and was quickly making his way across the beach. Dan removed his arm from Zoe's shoulders and grabbed her hand, pulling her along with him. "My name is Jacques and I work for this resort and it is my job to catch lovers on our beaches. I can destroy these photos but it will cost you."

"Jacques? As in our limo driver Jacques?" Zoe hissed to Dan, her eyes widening in surprise. The pair watched as Jacques showed the couple the pictures on the screen of his digital camera.

"How much do you want for them?" the man asked.

"What do you say to 500 per picture? I'd say that's fair, otherwise these will be posted all over the internet by tomorrow morning." Dan and Zoe stepped from the shadows,

"Don't you think 500 per picture is a little steep?" Dan called to Jacques. The photographer whirled to face Zoe and Dan, "Did we forget to mention that we're fraud investigators Zoe?" he turned to Zoe, eying her playfully.

"Well I suppose we must have Dan. Otherwise Jack here wouldn't be looking so confused!" Zoe grinned back at him as they listened to the sounds of approaching sirens. Voices filtered through the trees as the police approached Jacques looked defeated knowing there was no escape. Jacques was arrested without much trouble and charged with six counts of extortion and entrapment.

"Well Zoe shall we go back to our room for the night? I don't know about you but I'm ready to eat and fall into bed. On the bright side we have the rest of the week to relax here." Zoe smiled up at him as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders again, pulling her close, but her mind was racing, _What did he mean when he said 'He knew?' Did he feel like I did? Do I want him to? Do I want to do anything with him? What kind of example is this for the kids? I don't even go out on a date with him and I sleep with him?...woah who said anything about sleeping with anyone?_ She sighed softly, trying to get herself to relax as they approached the dining room. The couple enjoyed another delicious meal, both conspicuously avoiding alcohol and as they approached their room both grew quiet, each lost in thought. The silence stretched on as they both got ready for bed, each wondering where the night would lead. Zoe exited the bathroom in a backless silk nightgown to find Dan seated on the bed with the lights dimmed and a bottle of body lotion in his hands. Her voice caught in her throat at the prospect of receiving a sensual massage from Dan. "You seemed stressed at dinner Zoe. How about a massage?" he smiled sweetly at her, silently hoping she knew he wasn't expecting anything in return. Zoe nodded hesitantly and lay down on her stomach beside Dan on the bed. She felt him shift on the bed, reaching out to push her hair to the side. He opened the vanilla scented lotion and poured some into his hands, warming it before he began to rub Zoe's back and shoulders.

"Mmm..." Zoe couldn't manage to string together thoughts as he gently kneaded her taut muscles.

"Zoe?" he whispered into her, "I want you to know that this doesn't have to go anywhere you don't want it to okay?" She looked up at him, eyes glittering with tears at his sweet sensitivity.

"Dan...it's not that I don't want this to go somewhere...I'm just worried about what kind of example it'll set for the kids, Taylor especially." she looked like a scared child on the bed with him.

"Zoe if you're not comfortable with this then nothing will happen. I know what I want but if you're not ready I can wait." Dan reassured her.

"Earlier when we were on the beach you said you knew how I was feeling...was that just because of what we were overhearing?" Zoe moved so her head was resting on a pillow in Dan's lap and she stared up at him expectantly.

"Zoe you wouldn't believe the number of cold showers I've been forced to take because of you. What we were overhearing wasn't helping the attraction I already have to you and I was trying hard not to do anything stupid." She grinned up at him.

"Dan?"

"Hmm?"

"Kiss me."


	7. Cruising Catalina

**Disclaimer: **Take a guess

**A/N: **Well I got that annoying plot out of my way fairly quickly only problem now is where to take the story. I considered this from a lot of angles but my main problem is I can't write Zoe/Dan smut like I was sorta planning...it just doesn't work so I'm going to write Zoe/Dan fluff instead...sound good? I hope so...I read an A/N by another author the other day (can't for the life of me remember who) and they said something about being unable to write smut because it would be actors doing it (okay I can't explain it but I know what I mean...I think... and that's all that matters. If I find out who wrote it and what they said I'll add it to my next chapter) so now all I can think is how I can't see Joely Fisher and Chris Potter doing anything my warped imagination can come up with so yeah I don't know why I felt the need to share all that but I did and that's that. Now enough of my useless, pointless rambles. On with the story!

* * *

Dan's hands, which had wound their way into Zoe's curls stilled at her request. "Zoe...Not that I don't want this but you raised a pretty good argument a few minutes ago so why don't we take this slow okay?" Zoe looked up at him with big eyes, both shocked and somewhat relieved he had turned her down.

"Dan all I want is for you to kiss me...I love the way you make me feel, like the whole world just disappears and I'm the only one that matters. I've never been with a guy who could make me feel so safe and loved and comfortable that I just wanted to sink into his arms and for him to never let go but that's how I feel with you Dan." Zoe sat up so she could look into his eyes more directly, "No man has ever kissed me and left me feeling as dizzy as you did this morning." She stared into his eyes waiting for him to say something, anything.

"Zoe you are the most incredible woman I have ever met and I promise you here and now that I will never, ever do anything to hurt you." Dan leaned in slowly, eyes never leaving hers as he kissed her for the second time that day. Zoe sighed softly into his mouth as she shut her eyes, revelling in the sensation of his mouth on hers. The kiss seemed to go on forever, neither wanting it to end but both knowing it had to. Dan's lips moved from hers and they kissed a path down her jaw to her neck, stopping to nibble gently on her earlobe. "I think we better stop now Zoe," he was breathing hard. Zoe nodded, knowing that if she didn't stop then she wouldn't be able to stop at all. Dan lay down on the bed, gently pulling Zoe with him so most of her body was pressed against his. "G'night Zoe," he murmured softly into her ear.

"Mmm," was the only sound that came from Zoe as she squirmed into a more comfortable position, still with much of her body pressed against Dan's.

* * *

Sunlight filtered through the curtains as dawn broke and Zoe yawned, stretching her body out before cuddling back against Dan. "Morning beautiful," he whispered softly.

"G'mornin," she replied, her body moulding perfectly to his. "What time is it?" she asked sleepily.

"Almost eight o'clock," Zoe groaned and pulled the blanket up over her head, eliciting a soft chuckle from Dan.

"I'm on holiday," she moaned, "I shouldn't be up this early!" Her voice was muffled by Dan's chest as she asked, "can't we just stay here all day? I mean no one would miss us!" Dan laughed, pushing the blanket down,

"C'mon sleepyhead I signed us up for a boat tour. It'll be fun I promise." Dan flashed a grin her way, ducking as she threw a pillow at him.

"You suck, you know that? I hate early mornings, especially when I don't have to work!" Zoe braced herself as she felt Dan sliding his arms underneath her so he could lift her out of bed for the second time in as many days. Dan felt her arms wind their way around his neck and took the opportunity to scoop her up and spin around before gently placing her on her feet with a chaste kiss and a pat on the bum, sending her towards the bathroom. The couple got ready for their day, Zoe grumbling the whole time about wanting to crawl back into bed until Dan caught her around the waist as they headed to the door. She cried out, a momentary flicker of fear in her eyes caused Dan to release her immediately.

"Zoe I'm sorry."

"It's all right Dan, you just surprised me. You could give a girl a little warning you know!" She turned and stepped into his arms, rising up on her toes to kiss him softly before pulling away, "Now come on! You got me up early to go on a boat tour so let's get it over with so I can get back to bed." Dan laughed and followed his beautiful partner from the room.

"Welcome to the _Starlight_Catalina's premieresemi-submersible vessel," they were greeted as they boarded the boat.

"Thanks," Zoe smiled at their greeter, turning to look at Dan, "We need to talk mister." She gave him her best 'I mean business' look as he followed her aboard. "Okay Dan since we're getting to know each other on this little trip of ours I think I should tell you that I am claustrophobic when I'm surrounded by water so today is not looking very promising for me." Zoe slumped into a chair as the boat pulled away from the dock.

"Oh Zoe I had no idea...do you want to ask them to go back and let us off?" Dan sat down beside her.

"Nah I'll stick it out," she replied, smiling bravely.

"Okay but just so you know I won't leave your side the whole trip okay?" Zoe smiled and cuddled into Dan's shoulder, allowing herself to relax and enjoy feeling safe in his arms. _This is so not me...I've never been the clingy type and Dan comes along and I can't let go_ _and this damn boat is only part of the reason._ "Zoe look!" she couldn't help but smile at his enthusiasm as he pulled a fish identification guide from his pocket, riffling through it to find the fish. Eventually Dan's enthusiasm rubbed off on Zoe and she began to relax and forget about the fact that she was six feet under the water with only a few panes of glass between her and the Pacific. "How're ya doing Zoe?" Dan asked as the boat turned to head back to the dock. She smiled brightly at him,

"Surprisingly enough this was a lot of fun," he smiled back at her leaning down and kissing her gently. "But Dan?" He looked at her expectantly, "you ever bring me on a submersible boat again and you're a dead man, got it?" Dan laughed,

"Yes ma'am," he said with a mock salute. Zoe stuck her tongue out at him before turning to rest her head on his shoulder as the boat docked. "I'm hungry," whined Dan.

"Yeah well so am I but there's nothing we can do about it until we get off the boat so sit there and..." Zoe caught herself, "God can you tell I'm a mother or what?" Dan grinned and pulled her to her feet,

"C'mon dry land and food!" As the couple disembarked they were met by a hotel staff member, armed with a picnic basket and blanket.

"Mr. Lennox? Here are the things you requested," the young man handed over the goodies as Zoe dug into Dan's pocket to retrieve his wallet to tip him. "And may I recommend that you walk about a kilometre down that way as there is a beautiful grove of palm trees that is perfect for a picnic."

"Thank you," Dan juggled the basket and blanket until Zoe reached up and grabbed the blanket from him. They walked down the beach, finding the grove where they enjoyed their picnic, Dan keeping the basket away from Zoe telling her he had a surprise in it that she couldn't see until the end of the meal. He caught her trying to sneak a peek into the basket more than once during their picnic. "Well I see where your nieces and nephew get their insatiable curiosity from!" She stuck her tongue out at him again,

"Okay food done. I want the surprise!" Zoe looked at him expectantly, eyes glittering with excitement. Dan reached into the basket and withdrew a bowl of strawberries and whipped cream, causing Zoe to blush. "You're evil you know that?" she said to him. "Lemme guess...you want an explanation right? Well fine I'll have you know that I had a dream that involved the two of us along with those two food items," she said, pointing accusingly at the bowl. Dan cracked up laughing, finally understanding her earlier reaction to the strawberries and whipped cream. Zoe punched him playfully on the arm, "It's not nice to laugh you know Dan." She pouted,

"Aw Zoe I'm sorry... It's funny!" Dan tried to regain some semblance of composure as he reached out to grab a strawberry, dipping it in the whipped cream before bringing it to Zoe's lips. They spent the remainder of the afternoon on the beach until Dan said, "Okay we better get going or we'll miss our sunset cruise, and before you ask Zoe, this boat is not submersible."

"Ooh sunset cruise? That sounds fun!" Zoe allowed Dan to pull her to her feet and they walked towards the hotel.

**TBC...**

**A/N 2: **The semi-submersible boat "Starlight" really does exist, along with it's sister ship "Emerald" and the Sunset Isthmus Cruise our couple will be embarking on in the next chapter exists as well but most of the details are invented by me... oh right one kilometre is just over half a mile... I really should just use imperial since Catalina Island is part of California but I can't help it! I have two essays to write over the next few days so my update might not come for a while but I'll do my best.


	8. The Icy Grapes of Wrath

**Disclaimer: **I'm out of witty (ish) things to write here...

**A/N: **This story and the saying "flying by the seat of my pants" seem to be synonymous. I have no freaking clue where this is going but I'm enjoying writing it so I suppose it'll go on for a while yet... (Recall that: reviews chocolate)_ – _Zoe's dress is inspired by a Betsey Johnson and the shoes are Jimmy Choo's (hehe rhyming) though I'm sure most of you don't give a crap what the dress or shoes I'm thinking of looks like (if you really want to know I'll send you the links where you can find them). Oh as I said in the last chapter, the "Sundown Isthmus Cruise" does exist (but I've invented all the details), so does the restaurant they eat at (Harbour Reef Restaurant) but again all details are mine. Anywho... back to the story!

* * *

Dan walked into the bedroom to find Zoe seated in front of the mirror struggling to get her butterfly necklace on. She looked up and met his eyes in the mirror, watching as he walked over to her and took the clasp from her hands. His eyes never left hers as he fastened the necklace, offering his hand to her as she rose from the chair. "Zoe...you look incredible," Dan watched as the dress flared around her knees as she spun. He gazed at her, _picture of perfection,_ he thought with a smile. The white dress with simple embroidery was plain enough not to distract from her beauty but hugged her curves perfectly and the pink sandals with glittering butterflies looked absolutely gorgeous on her feet. She had a perfect pale pink hibiscus tucked behind her left ear, her curls left loose, tumbling around her shoulders. 

"You don't look so bad yourself mister," she replied with a shy smile. His requisite suit and tie had been replaced with a more casual look, khakis and a navy blue golf shirt that brought out the blue in his eyes. On the way out of the room he grabbed a casual jacket in case it got cooler in the evening, tossing Zoe's towards her. She checked the time on a delicate silver watch, "Uh Dan we've got about fifteen minutes before the boat leaves without us..." They headed towards the dock hand in hand, just making the final boarding call.

The couple situated themselves on the deck of _The Magdalene_, watching the sun begin its decent toward the horizon. A steward approached, offering flutes of champagne and delicate canapes on a silver tray. They indulged, savouring the _Dom Perignon, _eyes focused on the beautiful hues of the slowly setting sun. "So Zoe...are you having a good vacation so far?" Dan asked, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as she settled into her chair.

"Mmm...definitely!" she grinned at him and watched the shorebirds frolic as they approached their port of call for the evening. They disembarked from the boat, Zoe taking Dan's proffered hand and continuing to hold it as they headed to the _Harbour Reef Restaurant _for dinner. They were greeted by the maitre d' who lead them to a table with a perfect view of the ocean.

"May I get you a drink to start?" he asked. Zoe looked at Dan expectantly, who picked up the wine menu and ordered a bottle of Pinot Grigio. "Excellent choice sir. I will have it brought out for you immediately."

"Thanks," Dan looked across the table at Zoe. Zoe smiled at him before dipping her head to focus on her menu. "I think I'm going to go with the chicken and broccoli fettuccine. How about you Zoe?"

"I'm leaning towards the roasted turkey with pomegranate sauce. It's stuffed with wild rice and goat cheese...sounds so decadent. I could get used to living like this!" Zoe finished with a giggle, accepting the glass from the waiter. They ordered their food and ate, talking amiably about work, past relationships and the kids among other subjects.

"Well Zoe, how about dessert? I have the perfect thing in mind to finish off the night." She nodded and Dan signalled the waiter to take the dessert order, "Could we please have a slice of cherry-peach pie and two glasses of Inniskillin Icewine?"

"Of course sir," the waiter made his way to the kitchen with their order, returning fifteen minutes later and presenting them with the wine and a plate of pie with two forks. The couple shared the dessert, enjoying the pairing of the sweet Icewine and slightly tangy pie.

"Okay...if I eat anymore I think I'll explode!" Zoe slumped back into her chair, swallowing the last of her wine, "Good wine..where's it from again?" Dan could tell she was a little tipsy, but then again, so was he.

"Inniskillin, it's in Ontario...Canada," he answered her as he signed the check, glancing at the price and nearly choking on his wine. "Well Zoe I think M might have something to say about how much we just spent on dinner...how could two people have possibly eaten $136.57 worth of food?" Zoe's jaw dropped at the price, causing Dan to laugh, "You look so cute when you do that Zoe." She snapped her mouth shut, blushing. "C'mon we've gotta get back to the boat, time for the famous flying fish!"

Dan pulled out her chair as she stood, helping her into her jacket before putting on his own and taking her hand in his. "Uh Dan? Flying fish? Am I missing something here?" confusion clouded Zoe's face. Dan chuckled,

"That's one of the things Santa Catalina Island is famous for...it's flying fish!" He told her as they boarded the boat, taking her hand and leading her to their earlier seats. She sank down gratefully and accepted another flute of _Dom Perignon _from the steward, watching Dan decline. The ride back to the hotel was leisurely, Dan's arm wrapped around her to fight the chill of the night wind. The display put on by the fish was spectacular, both enjoying it immensely, almost sad as they docked. Dan's arm remained around her shoulders as she shivered slightly on their way to the elevator. As the doors slid shut Zoe spun and attacked him, kissing him feverishly. The doors opened and they stumbled down the hall, Zoe walking backwards and becoming trapped between Dan and the door as he fumbled to unlock it. They continued their blundering dance over to the bed, breaking the kiss momentarily as Zoe fell back with a giggle, pulling Dan down with her. She lay pinned beneath him as he trailed soft, open-mouthed kisses along her collar bone.

"Dan...ohhh" she gasped, her back arching, pushing her body into his. She felt his hand slide up her thigh, caressing it softly, causing her to moan. He pushed the dress up over her head and dropped it onto the floor, moving his mouth back to hers and then suddenly he stopped, pulling away from her. "Dan?" worry obscured her face, "Is everything okay?"

"I can't do this Zoe...I'm sorry." He got up from the bed and went into the bathroom, locking the door behind him, leaving a very stunned and upset woman on the bed.

He exited the bathroom an hour later, after a long, very cold shower to find Zoe curled into the fetal position on the bed in one of his t-shirts, fast asleep. He saw the tear tracks on her cheeks and hated himself for hurting her. _You did the right thing Dan. She was drunk, she would have regretted this tomorrow. _His conscience tried to reassure him. The taste of the wine on her tongue had snapped him back to reality as he kissed her and it had taken a lot of self control to stop what he was doing. He walked over to the bed and pulled the blankets up around her, kissing her temple softly before grabbing the extra blanket and pillow from the closet and heading towards the couch.

* * *

Dan lay awake on the couch, he'd checked on Zoe when he woke up to find her still fast asleep. He had shut his eyes and was attempting to go back to sleep when he heard her spring from the bed, running towards the bathroom. He rose quickly and followed her, his suspicions that she'd had too much to drink the night before were confirmed when he found her vomiting into the toilet. He grabbed an elastic from the sink and pulled her hair back into a messy ponytail before getting a cloth soaked in icy water. He knelt behind her, placing the cloth on the back of her neck and gently rubbing her back with his palm, waiting for her retching to subside before reaching out to flush the toilet. He sat back on the cool marble floor and pulled her into his arms, gently wiping her face with the cloth. He felt her shudder at the coldness of the cloth and floor on her bare legs so he pulled her into his lap. He let her relax for a few minutes in his arms, her breathing returning to normal, the shivers subsiding. "You okay Zoe?" he whispered softly in her ear, the cloth sitting on the floor beside him and his hands gently rubbing her back. 

"No," she whispered back. Dan's mind began to race, _she doesn't think we had sex...does she? Does she think I took advantage of her when she was drunk? _Her head remained buried in his shoulder as she began to ask about the night before, "Dan I-what - did I, we...um..." she trailed of as he began to kiss her cheek.

"It's okay Zoe. I'm sorry, I let it go way further than it should have. I drank less than you and I weigh more that you, there's no way I was nearly as drunk as you but I still let it happen." He softly reassured her, "How much do you remember about last night?" he asked.

"Umm I remember the boat ride and the dinner, the flying fish are kind of hazy. Don't remember much after that..." her mind began to process, _he still let **what **happen? Did we...oh God this is so not good. _She looked down and noticed for the first time that she was wearing Dan's t-shirt, her breath caught in her throat and she started to hyperventilate.

"Zoe?" Dan's voice was full of concern, "Zoe honey, relax. Just breathe," her shoulders started to shake as she began to cry, struggling to get out of Dan's arms. He refused to let go, keeping her safely in his lap, "It's okay Zoe. Nothing happened..." he trailed off. He knew she was scared that they'd done something she'd regret. She sobbed softly into his chest, resigned to the fact that he wasn't going to let her go. "Nothing happened Zoe, it's okay honey," he repeated his reassurances to her as she calmed down. She looked up at him, eyes shining with tears,

"We didn't...?" she asked and he shook his head no. She sighed softly before launching herself back to the toilet for another round. "Ugghhhh..." she moaned as Dan wiped her face gently with the cool cloth. "I can't hold liquor as well as I remember," she mumbled, causing Dan to laugh softly. "Not funny Lennox," she scolded from his arms.

"Sorry Zo," he whispered into her hair, "You okay to get up?" She shook her head no moaning as she did so,

"Ugh, remind me not to shake my head when I have a hangover," she complained. Dan scooped her up slowly, not wanting to make her more sick, and carried her to the bed.

"Want anything?" he asked, already placing a bottle of water and the garbage can by the bedside.

"Tylenol?" she asked groggily.

"Sure," he smiled down at her and went to retrieve some from the bathroom.

**TBC...**

**A/N 2: **The boat _The Magdalene _doesn't exist (as far as I know) and Inniskillin wineries really do make icewine. I think this story is going to start winding down now, probably a couple more chapters...not even sure anyone is still reading it but since I have exams to write and a full time job in the summer there won't be much time for writing. I may do a sequel sometime later or I may just continue on with this one later.


	9. The Downside of Sunlight

**Disclaimer: **Seeing as the show is going off the air I really would like the rights to the characters...as long as they're free. Ya know my birthday is in two weeks...think they'll come with a big red bow? No? Hmm...since there is more chance of Hades freezing over than that happening, I won't hold my breath.

**A/N: **Okay I'm bored of their little excursion to California now so they're heading home at the end of this chapter, I need more characters to play with!

* * *

Zoe emerged from the bedroom at just after one in the afternoon to find Dan on the balcony, reading his book, "Hey," she whispered softly.

"Hey yourself," he replied, looking up from his book. "Feel better?" he asked, her skin was so pale it scared him. She nodded, walking unsteadily towards him. Dan set his book down and motioned for her to sit on his lap, wrapping his arms around her as she did. He felt her sigh heavily, followed with a loud growl from her stomach. "Hungry?" he asked, she nodded again. "Well why don't you go have a bath in that nice whirlpool tub and I'll order you some lunch okay?"

"Okay," she said quietly, still embarrassed about her earlier actions. She had regained some memories of the night before, one of the most vivid was attacking Dan in the elevator.

"Zoe?" he said as she retreated into the room, "Are you okay?" She hated that he could read her so well.

"Yeah...just a little embarrassed," she replied shyly before closing the bathroom door. She leaned back against the door, trying to steady herself. _Relax Busiek, _she scolded herself, _He's obviously not upset about what happened...or didn't happen last night so just let it go! _She drew herself a bath, sinking into the steamy water and shutting her eyes. Her relaxation lasted for all of twenty minutes before she smelled the food Dan had ordered, sending her leaping from the bath and back to the toilet.

"Zoe?" Dan knocked on the door after hearing her quick jump from the bath. He opened the door slowly, grabbing a towel to wrap around Zoe's shaking form. "Hey..." he smoothed the hair out of her eyes and pulled it back into another ponytail, "You okay?" He wrapped the towel around her tighter as she crawled into his lap, shaking uncontrollably. He could feel the heat radiating off her skin so he gently picked her up and carried her out into the airconditioned bedroom. "Okay sweetheart I think you spent a little to much time in the sun." He layed her gently on the bed, pulling the sheet up to cover her before grabbing a cloth from the bathroom and filling the ice bucket with cold water. He stopped at the mini-bar to get a few cold bottles of water and crawled into the bed with her, handing her a water bottle and dipping the cloth into the icy water before beginning to gently wipe her face and neck. She downed the bottle of water in minutes, instantly reaching for another. Dan placed the cloth on her forehead, his hands, icy from the water, he placed on her flushed cheeks. Zoe relaxed, shutting her eyes, revelling in the sensation of his body being so near her when all she was wearing was a bed sheet, the towel having fallen off in the trip from the bathroom to the bed. "C'mon Zoe, keep drinking," he told her, "We need to get some fluids in you." Dan was calm on the outside but he was terrified inside, he worried that heat exhaustion combined with alcohol could be dangerous.

"I'm okay Dan," she looked up at him, the concern evident in his eyes. She finished the second bottle and tried to protest when he handed her a third.

"Zoe you've got a hangover from four glasses of wine and two of champagne and from the looks of it a nice case of heat exhaustion. You're dehydrated, now drink," he ordered gently. She finished the third full bottle before moaning,

"Daaannn I'm too hot!" she kicked the sheet off, not caring that Dan was about to become the first man to see her naked in a very long time.

"I know honey. I'm gonna go fill the bath with cool water okay? I'll be right back." Dan emptied the tub and refilled it with icy water before going back to the bedroom to get Zoe. If he hadn't been so worried about her health he was pretty sure the sight of her sprawled naked and sweaty on a bed would have turned him on immensely. "I'm gonna put you in a nice cool bath okay Zoe?" he gently slid his arms underneath her cradling her like a baby, somehow maintaining his composure as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He lowered her slowly into the bathtub, and remained at her side, gently running his fingers through her hair and waiting for her temperature to come down. He softly combed the tangles out of her curls and slowly braided her hair, securing it with an elastic at the end.

"And where did you learn to braid hair Mr. Lennox?" Zoe asked groggily.

"A girlfriend in college made me learn so I could braid hers, it was to her waist," he told her, re-wetting the cloth to put back on her forehead. Zoe's eyes snapped open,

"Dan?"

"Yeah Zo?"

"Dan...I'm naked."

"I realize that Zoe."

"Dan I'm naked, in a bathtub and you're in the same room."

"I know."

"Why?"

"Because I didn't want you passing out in here by yourself. Don't worry Zoe, I haven't been ogling you," he said lightly, trying to break the tension. A small smile passed over her face as he removed the cloth and placed his palm on her forehead to see if she had cooled at all. "I think your temperature's gone down. You wanna get out now?" She nodded shivering slightly, allowing Dan to wrap a towel around her as she stood. He helped her from the tub and led her to the bed, "Here," he pulled a t-shirt and boxers from his luggage, "Put these on." She took the proffered garments but didn't move to drop the towel. "Zoe?"

"Umm...can you turn around Dan?" she blushed lightly. He chuckled,

"Sure Zoe," he turned his back to her and heard the towel drop to the floor. He waited a few moments before asking, "You decent?" the smile evident in his voice.

"Yeah," she replied quietly, climbing into the bed. "Dan?"

"Yeah Zo?" he had turned to go clean up the bathroom but stopped when he heard her voice.

"Stay with me?" she asked, almost childishly. He smiled at her and climbed into the bed beside her, allowing her to cuddle up against him and fall asleep. Zoe awoke an hour later with Dan rubbing her back gently, a cool cloth draped across the back of her neck. She sighed and turned her face to look at him, "Dan?" she questioned softly.

"Hey Zo. Feel better?" he reached out and pushed her hair out of her face. She nodded, silently thanking him for not mentioning the previous night. "I'm going to order you some food, okay?"

"Okay...Dan?" he looked down at her, "thank you." He just smiled, knowing the unsaid messages hidden in her thank you.

"Any time, Zoe," he kissed her forehead tenderly before sliding out of the bed to go order room service. Dan returned ten minutes later with a bowl of chicken noodle soup and a cold sports drink. He coaxed Zoe to sit up and managed to get her to eat most of the soup and drink all of the sport drink before she lay back down, Dan pulling the sheets up around her. "I'm gonna go call the airlines and get us a flight out in the morning 'kay?" Zoe nodded, eyes slipping shut. She felt his gentle kiss, a mere brush of lips, as she drifted to sleep.

* * *

**A/N: **hmmm...bored of this chapter now lol I have a short attention span don't I...oh well...next chapter they'll be on their way home/home...R&R!

**P.S.** Zoe's illness was just an excuse to get them home early and I am not a doctor and my junior lifeguard training was when I was 9 (10 years ago)so forgive me if I messed up treatment for heat exhaustion...

**P.P.S**. has anyone else seen the finale of the show? ("Zoe's Phony Matrimony") HOLY CRAP! I'm still reeling from what happened...man that was soooooo awesome and unexpected and a million other things but WOW! So upset that the show was cancelled!


	10. Head in the Clouds

**Disclaimer: **Do you really think I'd be writing fanfic if I owned anything?

**A/N: **_bebexsesso_ – I live in Halifax (well I go to school here anyways) and I watch Wild Card on Global, not Lifetime. Global aired the finale last week and yes it is so totally worth watching! It was so unexpected and great and a million other things...I'm so upset that the series was cancelled!

**A/N pt2: **Well I'm still having fun with this story so I'll keep updating as much as I can...might even end up with some plot at some point! Did a minor edit to chapter 4 nothing major...you can probably get by w/o reading it if you don't want to. (Basically it went from Zoe being raped to the guy trying to rape her and ends up beating her up...might never come up again in the story but you never know!)

* * *

"Zoe," Dan whispered into her ear, "C'mon Zoe you gotta get up now." Zoe groaned and rolled over, pulling the blankets up over her head. Dan smiled, "Zoe the plane leaves in three hours and you still have to pack," he gently tugged the blankets down as she rolled to face him.

"Whatimes'it?" she asked through a yawn.

"Eleven," Dan replied, smirking as her eyes snapped open. She sat up slowly and slid off the edge of the bed where Dan caught her gently around the waist and planted a kiss on her lips. Zoe wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her and effectively deepening the kiss. "I had a good time the last few days Zoe," he spoke softly into her ear as her head rested against his chest, not ready or willing to break contact just yet.

"Oh yeah I'm sure taking care of me has just been an absolute joy," she replied sarcastically looking up at him and wrinkling her nose as she recalled the past few days. Dan laughed and kissed her again,

"I'd do anything for you Zoe," he said quietly, feeling her tense as he spoke. She buried her head in his chest in what he thought was embarrassment and was shocked when he felt her hot tears on his shoulder. "Zoe? Zoe what's wrong?" She didn't answer but pulled him closer to her, needing to feel him. Dan rubbed her back pulling her close and placing feather-light kisses in her hair as she cried, waiting for her to be ready to talk. Slowly she calmed, pulling back from Dan to wipe away the tears before allowing him to pull her back into his arms,

"I'm sorry Dan," she said into his neck, "It's just...I-I haven't felt like I could trust and love someone as much as I do you since my sister died. I've never been clingy or dependant on the men in my life, that always seemed so weak but you...you make me feel so safe and comfortable..." she trailed off, sighing. Dan smiled down at her,

"Hey Zoe?" she looked up into his eyes, "I love you too. And accepting help when you need it isn't weak Zoe. You're an incredibly strong woman and I admire you for that but don't be afraid to let me help out sometimes okay?" he dropped another kiss on her lips before squeezing her tight. "You okay? We really do need to get moving." She nodded and allowed herself another moment in his arms before heading off to dress and pack.

They sat on the plane, hands joined and fingers intertwined as they read Dan's book, Zoe's head resting on his shoulder. When the seatbelt sign was switched off Zoe undid hers and flipped up the armrest that separated her from Dan and moved closer to him. Dan watched as the female half of a couple sitting further forward in the plane headed towards the bathroom, followed moments later by her male counterpart. He couldn't help but chuckle, he knew what they were planning and he was sure everyone else did as well...well except for Zoe, who seemed oblivious to the events transpiring. She looked up from the book upon hearing Dan's laugh and followed his eyes to the man disappearing into the bathroom. "What's so funny Dan?" he turned to look at her.

"You really don't know?" she shook her head, eyebrow quirked in question. "Well...ever heard of the Mile High Club Zoe?" she nodded, "Know what it is or how you become a member?" she shook her head in confusion. "You really don't fly much do you?"

"No..." she continued to stare at him, awaiting his explanation.

"Well the Mile High Club is people who...ahem...have sex," Dan blushed as Zoe's eyes widened, "in aeroplane bathrooms. And I'm pretty sure that's where that couple was headed..." Dan nudged Zoe and nodded in the direction of the bathroom twenty minutes later as he saw the door open. The man exited first, followed about three minutes later by his companion, both looking very pleased with themselves. Zoe erupted into a fit of giggles as the couple sat back down, burying her head in Dan's shoulder to avoid embarrassing herself. "Wanna join Zo?" he asked, nudging her softly. She looked at him in wide-eyed shock before she saw the amusement in his eyes. She punched him softly on the shoulder,

"Funny Dan," she made a face at him before resting her head back on his shoulder so they could continue the book. They touched down in Chicago without further incident and as they waited for their bags Dan pulled Zoe to him and kissed her. They parted as the baggage carousel whirred to life, "What was that for?" she asked breathlessly.

"I dunno," he replied, keeping his arms around her waist, holding her to him, "Can't a guy kiss a beautiful woman?" he asked. Zoe smiled and shook her head, leaning into him, oblivious to their audience.

Taylor's jaw hit the floor, "Taylor? Cliff?" Hannah asked, "Why did Mr. Lennox kiss Aunt Zoe?" Hannah tugged at Taylor's coat to get her attention. Taylor turned to look down at her little sister and gave her a half-hearted shrug, shaking her head and wondering the same thing. "Aunt Zoe! Mr. Lennox!" the youngest Woodall called, running to meet the two adults.

"No! Hannah!" Taylor hissed, grabbing futilely for her younger sister's coat. Dan and Zoe turned to face them, Zoe bending to hug Hannah and listen to the stories of the past few days. "Hey Aunt Zoe, Mr. Lennox" both she and Cliff called as they approached, "How'd the case go?" Taylor asked followed immediately by Cliff asking,

"Why are you home so early? Is everything okay?" Zoe smiled at the kids,

"The case went great, solved it not long after we got there. We came home because I wasn't feeling very well." Zoe answered them, trying to remain as vague as possible while giving them enough information to stop the barrage of questions. No such luck.

"Are you okay? Do you need to go to the doctor or anything?" Taylor sounded worried and Hannah wrapped her arms around her aunt's waist. Dan chuckled as he pulled the luggage from the carousel, his earlier comment about the kids curiosity coming back to him.

"I'm fine Taylor, Dan took very good care of me," Zoe assured her niece, not missing the strange look Taylor gave Dan as he and Cliff got the rest of the luggage. Dan took Zoe's hand in his as they left the airport. The ride home was uneventful, with Hannah and Cliff regaling the adults with stories of school and friends while Taylor sat silently in the backseat, trying to come up with a tactful way of broaching the subject of her aunt's kiss later that night. Dan dropped them at home, helping Cliff carry the luggage in and stealing a quick kiss from Zoe before heading home. "See you at work Dan," Zoe said with a smile as she pushed the door shut behind him.

Once dinner was finished and the two youngest Woodall's were put to bed Zoe collapsed gratefully on the couch, shifting into a sitting position when Taylor arrived from the kitchen bearing two bowls of Ben & Jerry's. "So Aunt Zoe...how was the trip? Did you have _fun_?" Taylor stressed the last word, eyeing her aunt carefully.

"Juts what exactly are you implying little missy?" Zoe asked, spoon stopping midway between the bowl and her mouth.

"Oh nothing Aunt Zoe but if you're gonna deny this you should know that there were three witnesses to that little kiss at the airport." Zoe's jaw dropped, ice cream all but forgotten as she felt the heat rise in her cheeks. Taylor suppressed a grin as she watched her aunt struggle to come up with an answer. "Don't worry about it Aunt Zoe, we're happy for you. We all know how much you like Dan, he's a great guy. You don't have to hide anything from us. I'm gonna finish this in my room, night Aunt Zoe," Taylor dropped a kiss on her aunts cheek and tried to make a quick getaway.

"Taylor?" Zoe called after her, catching her at the bottom of the stairs, "For the record...I didn't sleep with Dan...well I slept with him but not _slept _with him...ya know?"

"Whatever you say Aunt Zoe," Taylor smiled and bounded up the stairs before her aunt could gather her thoughts.

* * *

**A/N pt3: **So I have an idea that I want to work into the story (damn plot bunny) but I want opinions on who should be...umm...affected by the...idea. Hard to explain w/o giving it away but if you would be so kind as to review (or even just answer this) and choose one of these characters: Zoe, Hannah or Taylor...I'm kind of leaning towards Taylor but Hannah's a better age for what I have planned...cryptic no? LOL drop me a line! 


	11. Painful Secrets

**Disclaimer: **Sadly I own nothing...well I do own some things, just not anything in the story except for the plot in parts...not so much in others. My birthday's on the 27th...think if I wish for them when I blow out my candles I'll get them?...yeah I don't think so...well a girl can dream!

**A/N: **Still not sure who's gonna have my plot idea as part of their character...Zoe seems too old, Taylor is a little old but her character would work well, and Hannah is the perfect age but I'm not sure it would fit her character...grr oh well I suppose I'll just have to decide...wish me luck!

* * *

M passed Zoe's office, smiling to herself as she watched Dan lean over Zoe's shoulder to read the open file on her desk. It wasn't that he hadn't done that before, it was the smile on both of their faces, the placement of his hand on her back and the way she giggled when he whispered something into her ear. Yes she had done well, they were happy. M cleared her throat, smirking when the pair looked up guiltily. "So I hear the case went well?" she asked, avoiding the subject of why they were back three days early.

"Yeah it went great!" Zoe replied with a grin the size of Texas, "Solved it on our second day. Turns out the limo driver that picked us up at the airport was trying to get a little cash on the side." Zoe's smile faded as she saw the receipt M was holding in her hand.

"So the Harbour Reef Restaurant was worth the $140?" M looked accusingly at her two top investigators as they averted their eyes, Zoe studying the file in front of her while Dan's eyes darted around the room, accidentally finding M's.

"Well...here's the thing..." Dan struggled to come up with a viable explanation for their expensive dinner.

"Oh shut it Dan," M snapped at him, "I'm only going to allow you two to get away with this because you came back early and are going to make it up to me by working extra hard...right?" Silent nods from both Dan and Zoe were met with another smirk from M who had noticed that Dan's hand had slid down around Zoe's waist, resting on her hip as she spoke. "Glad to see you two had _fun_ on your trip..." M tossed over her shoulder as she made a quick escape before either investigator could form a response.

"Why is it that we go away for a few days and everyone thinks we slept together!" Zoe hissed to Dan.

"Umm...everyone?" Dan looked at Zoe awaiting an explanation, his hand rubbing small circles on her lower back. She jerked away from his hand,

"Yeah my niece thinks I slept with you!"

"Taylor?"

"No, Hannah," she shot him a look, sarcasm adding an edge to her voice, "of course Taylor! And to make it so much better they all saw you kiss me at the airport! What am I supposed to do Dan? This is exactly what I wanted to avoid!" Zoe slumped onto her desk. Dan knelt beside her chair, lifting her curls out of the way so he could see her face.

"Zoe...Taylor is a smart kid. Talk to her tonight...on second thought, why don't I talk to her. Might do her good to have a guy's perspective on all of this."

"You wouldn't mind?" Zoe turned her head to look at him. He kissed her softly and said,

"Of course not. I'll be at your place around six okay?" Zoe smiled and nodded, grateful for Dan's help.

Zoe hummed softly to herself as she vacuumed the livingroom in preparation for Dan's arrival. A small part of her wondered why she was going to so much trouble, it was only Dan after all. _Yeah **only **Dan, _she thought to herself, silly smile on her face. She cursed softly as the vacuum ground to a halt under the couch. "Hannah I swear if this is another one of your dolls..." Zoe trailed off as she pulled the vacuum out to remove the offending article. She stared at the clump of hair that was clogging the hose, her brain trying to figure out where it possibly could have come from. Her first thought was that Hannah had tried to give a Barbie doll a haircut but the hair was too long and she was pretty sure it wasn't synthetic. She sat down on the couch, _Okay well it's too dark to be Hannah's, too long to be Cliff's and it's definitely not mine so...Taylor? _The doorbell rang, jolting Zoe from her reverie and she went to let Dan in, vacuum still in hand. "Hey Dan...c'mon in," Dan noticed the far off look in her eyes as soon as she opened the door.

"Zoe? What's wrong?" he stepped into the house, tipping her head up so she was looking into her eyes. She wordlessly lifted the vacuum hose. "Is that...hair?" Zoe nodded, "Where did it come from?" she raised her shoulders half-heartedly. Taylor made it halfway down the stairs before she saw the hair in the vacuum,

"Shit," she swore under her breath, drawing the attention of the two adults.

"Tay...wha?" Zoe looked up the stairs at her niece, who turned on her heel and raced back up the stairs, slamming the door to her room.

"Uh Zoe..." she turned back to Dan, dropping the vacuum hose and stepping into his arms. Dan wrapped his arms around her and rubbed her back gently, "Why don't I take Hannah and Cliff out to dinner and then to a movie? You and Taylor should probably...talk." He felt her sigh into his chest,

"Thanks Dan, that would be good. Hannah! Cliff!" the two youngest of her charges came running down the stairs, Hannah running to give Dan a hug.

"Hi Mr. Lennox! Are you staying for dinner?" she grinned up at him.

"Actually I was planning on taking you and Cliff out for dinner and then to go see a movie. Is that okay?"

"What about Taylor and Aunt Zoe? Aren't they coming?"

"Not tonight, this is a special treat just for the two of you!"

"That's cool," Cliff spoke up for the first time, "what movie are we going to see?"

"You two can choose in the car okay? Let's get out of your Aunt's hair," Dan winked at Zoe, giving her hand a squeeze and whispering, "It'll be okay Zoe. I'll have these two back by nine and we can talk okay?" She nodded at him and slowly walked up the stairs to Taylor's room.

"Taylor?" Zoe knocked softly at her niece's door, "Can I come in?" Zoe slowly opened the door to find her eldest niece sitting on the edge of her bed, her hair in an uncharacteristic ponytail. "Taylor what..."

"I don't want to talk about. Okay Aunt Zoe?"

"No, Taylor, it's not okay. I need to know why. And how." Zoe moved to sit on the edge of the bed beside her niece, Taylor immediately getting up and sinking into the chair by her desk.

"I don't know why. And I'd think the how is pretty damn obvious!" Taylor snapped at her aunt, immediately regretting her tone.

"Watch your mouth Taylor. Did you..." Zoe paused to take a deep breath, "pull it out?" she whispered the last part of her sentence, not really sure she wanted to know the answer.

"Yeah it was just stress okay? It won't happen again!" Taylor was getting anxious, she didn't want anyone to know about what she'd done, not even her aunt. Zoe's eyes were glued to Taylor's hand as it wound it's way into her hair and began to pull out single strands.

"Then why are you doing it now?" Zoe couldn't force her voice above a whisper. Taylor jerked her hand away from her head, a strand of hair still clasped in her fingers. She stared at it as though it was a foreign object.

"Aunt Zoe?...What's wrong with me?" Taylor's voice trembled as she spoke, tears rolling down her cheeks. Zoe gave a helpless shrug, pulling her niece into a hug.

"I don't know Tay. But we're gonna get you help okay?" Taylor nodded and kissed her aunt's cheek. "Taylor can I...see?" Fear filled Taylor's eyes and her hands trembled as she released her hair from the elastic. Her dark hair fell into her face, revealing just how thin her hair had gotten. Taylor broke down into tears, Zoe pulled her into a hug, "It's gonna be okay Taylor. I promise. You hungry?" Taylor nodded as she swept her hair back into another ponytail, forcing a smile onto her face.

"Can we get Thai?" she asked quietly.

"Sure kiddo," Zoe wrapped her arm around her niece's shoulders as they descended to the livingroom.

"Where're Hannah and Cliff?" Taylor sat down on a chair in the kitchen while Zoe rooted through the kitchen for a Thai menu.

"Aha!" Zoe pulled out a menu triumphantly, "Oh Dan took them out for dinner and a movie. Thought we could use some girl time." Zoe smiled as she dialled the phone and ordered their food. When the food arrived they sat and ate in the livingroom, watching _Gone With the Wind_. Just after nine, food finished and cleaned up and the movie winding down, Dan and the younger two walked through the front door. Zoe smiled as they entered, Hannah fast asleep in Dan's arms. "Okay kiddies, time for bed," Zoe whispered so as not to wake Hannah. They mounted the stairs, Dan bringing up the rear with Hannah. After they were all tucked in for the night, Zoe and Dan went back to the livingroom silently. Dan sat down on the couch and motioned for Zoe to sit beside him. She tossed a pillow into his lap and laid down on the couch, her head on the pillow.

"So...is Taylor okay?" Dan broached the subject, he knew Zoe needed to talk. He wasn't going to let her keep this bottled up inside. Zoe shrugged,

"She's pulling out her hair Dan. By the roots! I-I feel so helpless...I don't know what to do to help her. I mean I was sitting there talking to her and she started to do it unconsciously. She can't or won't tell me why and I don't know what to do!" Zoe started to cry, Dan leaned down and kissed her forehead, trying to soothe her, all the while thinking of his sister, Rebecca. He knew she had gone through something similar, maybe she could help. Eventually Zoe fell into a fitful sleep, Dan slid out from beneath her and covered her with a blanket and walked into the kitchen to make a call to his baby sister.

Dan head the muffled curse from the other end of the phone as his sister struggled to find it after knocking it over, "'Lo?" came the sleepy voice of his sister.

"Becca? It's Dan...I need your help."

* * *

**A/N2: **Does Dan have a sister? Well if he doesn't in the show he sure does now. Rebecca Lennox is my creation (wow something I own!). Okay so obviously (or perhaps not) I've chosen Taylor for my little plot twist. I know this chapter doesn't explain it well but be patient and I'll try to get another chapter up soon! 


	12. Tricks

**Disclaimer:** I own Rebecca "Becca" and Kathryn "Katy" Lennox and the plot (plot? Haha it's true!) But that's it...

**A/N: **I hope this is going to turn out okay, I'm going to try to end off this chapter without too much of a cliffhanger because I don't know when I'll be able to update again. Thanks for the reviews all, good to know some people are still reading (and I do accept unsigned reviews if you're not a member or if you're like me and are too lazy to sign in most of the time). Anyways, back to the story.

* * *

"Dan?" Zoe awoke with a start, a nightmare still fresh in her mind. Dan walked back into the room, still talking on his cell when he sat down beside Zoe and pulled her into his arms. 

"I'll see you tomorrow Becca. Thanks. Yeah love you too, and give Kathryn a kiss for me," Dan snapped his cell shut and kissed the top of Zoe's head softly, "Hey," he whispered to her. "It's gonna be okay, I promise."

"Who was that?" Zoe asked tearfully, still clinging to his chest.

"I called my sister Rebecca. I remembered her going through something like this when we were younger. She's a psychologist now, I thought she might be able to help. She's gonna fly down tomorrow from Halifax. That's okay right? I don't want to overstep my boundaries or anything."

"No Dan it's okay, thank you." Zoe relaxed against his chest and fell back to sleep on his shoulder. Dan shifted carefully, lifting her into his arms and carrying her up the stairs.

"Mr. Lennox what's wrong with Aunt Zoe?" Dan nearly leapt out of his skin as Hannah appeared at her bedroom door.

"She's fine Hannah, she just fell asleep downstairs so I'm bringing her to bed. What are you doing up?" Dan shifted Zoe in his arms.

"I wanted a drink of water," Hannah copied Dan's whisper with a conspiratorial grin.

"Okay well you go get your drink and I'll put your aunt in bed and then I'll come tuck you back in okay?" Hannah smiled and skipped off to get her drink. Dan continued to Zoe's room, placing her carefully in the centre of the bed, sliding the blankets out from beneath her and covering her up.

"Dan?" Zoe's eyes fluttered open.

"Shhh go back to sleep Zo," he gently moved the hair out of her face, even in the dark he could see the fear in her eyes.

"Don't leave me Dan," her voice trembled.

"It's okay Zoe, I just have to go tuck Hannah back in and then I'll come say goodbye before I go home," he sat on the edge of the bed and leaned down to kiss her forehead.

"No, Dan. Stay...please? I - I need...I," Zoe blew out a breath.

"Okay Zoe. Just let me go tuck Hannah in okay? I'll be right back," he kissed her softly as if to seal his promise and went to get Hannah back into bed.

"Can you read me a story Mr. Lennox?" Hannah was sitting in bed, book in hand.

"Hannah it's late..."

"Pleeeease Mr. Lennox? Just one little short story?" Dan looked down at the little girl, knowing he was defeated when he looked into her pleading eyes.

"All right Hannah. It has to be short though," good as her word Hannah chose a short, happy story from her book and allowed Dan to pull the blankets up around her as she drifted off to sleep. "Night Hannah."

"G'night Mr. Lennox," she replied, yawning. Dan dropped a kiss on her forehead as she cuddled deeper into her blankets. Dan made his way back to Zoe's room, knocking softly before letting himself in.

"Hey Zo," Dan approached the bed softly. Zoe was sitting at the head of the bed, knees pulled up under her chin and her arms wrapped around them. Dan noticed that she had changed into pyjamas while he was gone. "C'mon Zoe, lie down," he coaxed her to lie down and as he went to pull away, intent on sleeping on the couch, she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Don't leave," she looked as though she was moments from begging him.

"I'm just gonna go sleep on the couch Zoe,"

"No...stay...please? I need you Dan, I'm scared," her voice was barely above a whisper, quivering with emotion.

"Okay sweetheart but you've got to let go for a second," Zoe released her hold on him, heart melting at his endearment, and watched as he stripped down to his boxers and a t-shirt before climbing in the bed beside her. Zoe immediately moved to him, wanting to fall asleep safe in his arms. "G'night Zoe," he whispered softly, placing another kiss on the top of her head as he felt her drifting to sleep in his arms.

* * *

Zoe awoke alone with light peeking through her curtains, the smell of pancakes drifted up the stairs and through her door, drawing her out of bed. Zoe found the kids seated around the table indulging in Dan's so called specialty, chocolate chip pancakes. "Nice breakfast guys," Zoe smiled at them, accepting a plate and steaming mug of coffee from Dan. As Zoe settled into her chair, Dan glanced at his watch. 

"I gotta run guys, I'll be back soon," Dan stopped as Zoe grabbed his wrist, pulling him towards her and reaching her other hand up to pull him down to her for a kiss. Dan pulled away first, smiling at Zoe, knowing how much she had just said to him in simple kiss. Dan headed for the door to drive to the airport and pick up his sister.

"Aunt Zoe! You kissed Mr. Lennox !" Hannah cried, causing the rest of her family to laugh.

"It's okay Hannah, Mr. Lennox likes Aunt Zoe and obviously she likes him. Come on we have to get ready for school!" Cliff lead his little sister upstairs leaving Zoe and Taylor alone at the table.

"Taylor...Dan went to pick up his sister from the airport," Zoe took a deep breath, Taylor waited expectantly, "She's a psychologist, Dan asked her to come talk to you." Taylor nodded,

"I'm gonna go get ready for school," Taylor walked out of the kitchen, pausing in the livingroom before running back in to give her aunt a hug, "Thanks Aunt Zoe."

"Anything for you kiddo, now go get dressed before you're late," Zoe smiled as Taylor left the room. She finished quickly before tossing on some clothes so she could drive the kids to school. When she returned she found Dan and a young woman sitting on her porch, a small baby on the woman's lap. "Hey Dan," Zoe called as she approached, getting the attention of the two. They rose from their seats, the woman shifting the baby to her hip.

"Zoe Busiek, this is my sister Rebecca and her daughter Katy," Rebecca stepped forward and hugged Zoe with her free arm,

"I know how difficult this is. I'll do everything I can to help Taylor," Rebecca whispered into her ear before releasing her.

"Thank you," Zoe smiled almost shyly, grinning as the baby reached out for her Uncle Dan. Dan took the little girl into his arms and followed Zoe and Rebecca into the house. He sat Katy down on her mother's lap as he returned to the car to get the playpen. "How old is Katy? She's just adorable," Zoe smiled at the little girl as Dan set up the playpen.

"She's six months," Rebecca replied, handing Katy to Dan so he could put her into the playpen.

"Ladies I'm going into work for a while, you both have my cell, Zoe don't worry about M, I'll cover for you," Dan winked at her, bending to kiss her softly before heading out the door, "Bye sis, thanks again."

"So Taylor's your niece right? How old is she?" Rebecca pulled a clipboard from her bag and began to take notes on Taylor. The day passed quickly and at just after four all three of the kids tumbled in the door. Taylor stopped dead when she saw the stranger on the couch with Zoe. Zoe stood up from the couch and corralled the younger two and managed to get them upstairs to do homework.

"Tay I'll be up in my room if you need me okay?" Taylor nodded and walked slowly over to the couch.

"So you're Mr. Lennox's sister?" Rebecca nodded,

"Yeah I'm Rebecca Lennox, please call me Rebecca, Miss. Lennox makes me feel old," at that moment Katy began to wake from her nap, gurgling and cooing to her stuffed animals, Rebecca smiled and motioned to the playpen, "and that is my daughter Katy." Taylor sat on the far end of the couch, pulling her legs up underneath her.

"So...where do we start?"

"Wherever you'd like Taylor, it can be about why I'm here, it can be about my past, it can be about makeup and fashion. It's your call," Rebecca mimicked Taylor's earlier action and pulled her legs up underneath herself, clipboard resting on her lap.

"You mean we don't have to talk about..." Rebecca shook her head, auburn curls swirling, "Okay well...how old are you?"

"Twenty-four,"

"And how old is Katy?"

"Six months,"

"How long have you been married?"

"Never," Taylor paused her rapid-fire questions at that answer.

"You're not married?"

"Nope."

"Oh...you know, why don't we just get down to this okay? I just want it to go away and never come back."

"All right. So, in your own words, why am I here?" Rebecca sat with her pen poised.

"Because Mr. Lennox called you?" Rebecca smiled,

"That's true...why did Dan, Mr. Lennox, call me?"

"Because I'm a freak?" Taylor meant for it to be a joke but she could tell immediately that Rebecca saw no humour in it, her entire body tensed at the comment. "Sorry, that was stupid," Taylor whispered. Rebecca smiled at her,

"It's alright Taylor. So why am I really here?"

"Because Aunt Zoe was vacuuming yesterday and...and she found," Taylor took a deep breath, "She found hair under the couch." Taylor started to cry, allowing Rebecca to hug her. "And th-the hair was mine. I - I pulled it out and I c-can't stop." Rebecca hugged her closer, head swivelling to the door as Dan returned and mouthing "upstairs," to him so he would know where to find Zoe. Taylor sniffled, "Sorry," she whispered softly.

"Don't worry about it," Rebecca smiled down at her, handing her a box of Kleenex, "Can I ask you a few questions about it?" Taylor nodded her consent. Rebecca went through a whole list of questions, jotting down Taylor's answers on her clipboard. "Alright do you have any questions Taylor? I think we've done enough for one day."

"What's wrong with me?" Taylor whispered, desperately seeking an answer.

"Well from your responses, my diagnosis is going to be trichotillomania. It's not uncommon in young women and is very responsive to treatments."

"Tricko-what?" Rebecca laughed,

"Trick-o-till-o-may-nee-ah...most people just call it trich. The Greek name is too much of a mouthful. Translated literally it means hair pulling frenzy, nice mental picture huh?" Rebecca grinned, "And Taylor, I know how hard it is to talk about and you did awesome today."

"Thanks Rebecca," Taylor got up from the couch and moments later Zoe and Dan walked down the stairs. "I'm gonna go do my homework Aunt Zoe. Mr. Lennox? Thanks," Taylor smiled shyly and walked past the couple and up the stairs.

"I'll go start dinner Zoe, you go talk to Rebecca," Dan removed his arm from around her waist, pausing to kiss her before heading to the kitchen.

"Why don't you come have a seat," Rebecca smiled and patted the couch beside her. "Relax Zoe, everything is going to be okay."

* * *

**A/N2:** Hope that wasn't too overly cliffhanger-ish (how's that for a word!). Trichotillomania (trich or TTM) is a disorder characterised by recurrent urges to pull out hair usually resulting in visible bald patches. It is most commonly found in girls around puberty but has been noted in children as young as a year and in people as old as 70. Boys and men are also affected but not as frequently and they are less likely to seek treatment because they are able to attribute the hair-loss to male pattern baldness. It is estimated to affect about 2 percentof the population (about 7 million Americans) and is seen as an obsessive-compulsive disorder, a tic disorder and an anxiety disorder but is currently classified as an impulse control disorder by the diagnostic and statistics manual (IV) of psychological disorders. For more information go to trich dot org (why can't I type web addresses?) or email me. 


	13. Black Eyes, Blue Tears

**Disclaimer: **Well the birthday came and went...guess I'm not getting them...oh well, I can still play!

**A/N: **Well I've started a full-time job and I'm playing lacrosse twice a week so I'm not going to have a lot of time to update. I'll do what I can but I make no promises as to how often I'll update. Ugh...writer's block sucks...

* * *

Zoe sank tentatively onto the couch, trying to hide how badly her hands were trembling. No amount of reassurance from Rebecca was going to help until Zoe fully understood what was going on with Taylor and how she could stop it. "Okay, Taylor has given me permission to share some of what went on in our session with you, Zoe. So why don't we start with what is, quote unquote, "wrong" with Taylor," Rebecca said. Zoe nodded, hands gripping a cushion so tight her knuckles were going white. Rebecca slowly explained all the details of Taylor's disorder, watching Zoe's hands clench and unclench around her fistfuls of pillow. "I'll outline a treatment plan tonight and come by tomorrow afternoon and go through it with you and Taylor alright?" Rebecca's hand drifted to still Zoe's as she waited for a response.

"Yeah," Zoe replied, becoming aware that she had been holding her breath only when her response came with a forceful rush of air. Rebecca squeezed her hand reassuringly before getting up and scooping her baby out of the playpen and balancing her on her hip as she searched for a bottle in the diaper bag.

"Aunt Zoe is dinner ready yet?" the three Woodall children came clamouring down the stairs and into the livingroom, Hannah leading the way and whining about being hungry. Hannah stopped short when she saw the stranger standing near the couch, "Who're you?" she asked.

"Hannah that wasn't very polite," Zoe chided gently, "This is Rebecca Lennox, she's Mr. Lennox's sister."

"Oh...Hi! I'm Hannah, is that your baby?" Hannah approached Rebecca, peering into Kathryn's blanket.

"She sure is, this is Kathryn but I usually call her Katy," Rebecca smiled at the inquisitive child.

"Hannah, would you and Cliff please go set the table?" Zoe wanted a moment alone with the two older women in the room.

"Aw but it's Taylor's turn!" Cliff whined, stopping his pout when he saw the look on Zoe's face. He knew she meant business, "C'mon Hannah, lets go set the table," he took his little sister by the hand and led her to the kitchen. As they disappeared through the door Taylor walked over to her aunt and wrapped her arms around her, resting her head on Zoe's shoulder, a few stray tears finding their way down her cheeks. Zoe returned the hug, before turning to Rebecca.

"Would you like to stay for dinner? Dan usually makes enough for about ten people," Zoe forced a smile, not noticing Taylor tense as she invited Rebecca to stay.

"As much as I adore my brother's cooking, I highly doubt Taylor would be comfortable with me staying," Rebecca smiled, knowing full well how uncomfortable Taylor was.

"No...it's okay Rebecca. Stay...Mr. Lennox is your brother after all," Taylor forced a smile similar to her aunt's onto her face, her left hand drifting towards her scalp. Rebecca stepped forward, taking Taylor's hand in hers and smiled,

"If you're sure Taylor," Rebecca squeezed Taylor's hand as she nodded her consent just in time to hear Dan call them for dinner. Dinner began with Rebecca and Dan catching up, interrupted frequently by Zoe and the kids, asking for stories while Rebecca kept an eye on Katy who was seated on her lap and was intent on stealing pasta from her mother's plate. As the evening progressed the Woodall children began to grill Rebecca on her life and past.

"So were you and Mr. Lennox close when you were kids?" asked Taylor.

"Dan was a great big brother...except when I brought boyfriends home. Then he'd try to scare them away. I suppose he was just trying to protect me," Rebecca smiled wryly at the memory of Dan threatening one of her dates with death if he so much as layed one finger on her.

"What's you husbands name?" Hannah asked.

"Actually I'm not married," her smile diminished slightly.

"But you have a baby. You're only supposed to have a baby if you're married!" Rebecca's smile faded completely,

"Sometimes things don't happen the way they're supposed to Hannah," Rebecca's expression turned wistful as she thought of Kathryn's father.

"Okay kids that's enough interrogating for one night, go upstairs and finish off your homework before bed," Zoe sensed the palpable tension that had descended upon the room at the mention of Rebecca's love life. Taylor cleared the table quickly before following her younger siblings up the stairs. "Sorry about that...insatiable curiosity runs in the family," Zoe smiled, trying to break the tension.

"It's alright Zoe," Rebecca assured, "I guess I still have trouble talking about Tom. That's a story for another night though because right now I am exhausted."

"You can stay at my place Becca," Dan started, only to be interrupted by his sister,

"Dan I'm twenty four, I think you can stop calling me 'Becca'," Rebecca smirked at him.

"Hey you'll always be my little sister and you will always be 'Becca' to me, now lets go," Dan returned with a similar smirk, helping her pack up all of her things into his car. As she strapped Katy into her car seat Dan took a moment to talk with Zoe, "How're you doing Zo?" Zoe looked at him, face expressionless but he could see the turmoil in her eyes. "You know on our trip when I said you can let me help sometimes?" Zoe nodded, "Well this is one of those times. Do you need anything Zoe?" she nodded again.

"Stay with me tonight?" she whispered, fighting off tears.

"Of course Zoe. I'm just gonna go drop Becca at my place and I'll come right back okay?" Dan pulled her into his arms, holding her close for a few moments before going to join his sister in the car. Zoe walked back into the house as the taillights of Dan's car disappeared around the corner. She climbed the stairs slowly, instinctively checking on each of the kids before heading into her bedroom. She slipped into a silk camisole and matching pants before descending the stairs to wait for Dan. She was sitting on the couch, staring at a blank television screen when Dan returned, knocking softly at the door. She had to force herself not to run to the door and fling herself into his arms but he must have seen the struggle in her eyes because he immediately pulled her into his embrace, gently kicking the door shut behind him. "C'mon Zo, let's get to bed," he led her up the stairs and got her into bed before heading to the bathroom to change into pyjamas. When he returned he found her at the head of the bed, knees drawn up, staring intently at the door and trying to contain the urge to jump up and run to him. She didn't succeed and fairly leapt from the bed and into Dan's arms. "Shh it's alright Zoe. Rebecca is the best, if anyone can help Taylor she can." Zoe clung tightly to his chest, allowing him to manoeuvre her to the bed. Dan sat on the edge of the bed and placed his hands on Zoe's hips as she stood before him. She smiled at him slightly before climbing into the bed beside him, curling her body against his.

* * *

_Twenty three year old Rebecca Lennox had just gotten engaged to the man of her dreams. He was sweet and kind and so romantic and she knew she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. Rebecca and Tom had moved in together after they got engaged and within three weeks of their engagement Rebecca began to suspect she was pregnant. She was ecstatic and called her brother a month later to tell him the news after a home pregnancy test confirmed her suspicions. When her fiancé arrived home that night he discovered a trail of rose petals leading to the bedroom where he found Rebecca, positive pregnancy test in hand._

"_Tom we're having a baby," Rebecca whispered, a smile gracing her face and lighting up her eyes. Her smile soon faded when she watched her fiancé's_ _reaction to the news. He grew angry, accusing her of sleeping with someone else._

"_Who you been sleeping with you little slut? No way that's my kid...I don't want you or that bastard child!"_

_Rebecca had never been a shy person and she screamed right back at him. The moment his fist connected with her jaw the entire world seemed to stop. Her hand flew to the point of impact, and with tears streaming down her face she ran from the house. He chased her, and caught up to her and began pounding her hard with his fists. Dan heard her screams but was helpless to stop them until Tom strangled the last cry from her lips.

* * *

_

Dan awoke and sat up in bed, resting his head in his hands, his breathing fast and erratic. "Dan? What's wrong?" concern filled Zoe's voice.

"I haven't had that dream since Kathryn was born...Becca left Tom when she was about two months pregnant, he hit her and she walked out. The dream always starts off exactly as Becca told me what really happened but in the end Tom ends up killing her," Dan's breathing slowly returned to normal.

"He hit her?" Zoe asked, her arms wrapped tight around him, as much for her comfort as his.

"Once...fractured her jaw. I don't think I'll ever forget that phone call," Dan kissed the top of Zoe's head as he remembered the fateful day just over a year ago.

* * *

"_Dan? It's Rebecca," Dan knew immediately that she had been crying, her voice was rough and barely raised above a whisper, "Tom hit me, Dan. Said I was sleeping around behind his back and he didn't want my bastard child so he broke my jaw."_

"_Becca where are you?" Even over the miles of phone line the concern was evident in Dan's voice._

"_A hotel...I'm going to the airport in the morning...I'm leaving Dan. I love you and I'll call you when I can," the ominous click through the phone_ _sent a shudder through Dan's body even as he begged his sister not to hang up.

* * *

_

**A/N: **I haven't updated in for-freakin'-ever! This chapter was a tough one to write, and seeing as how much of it was done when I was very tired and all my work is unbetaed (how on earth do you spell unbataed/unbatad?) please excuse any misspellings and typing errors.


	14. Finally

**Disclaimer:** Rebecca and Kathryn Lennox are mine...all mine! (insert evil laugh here). Unfortunate as it is I own nothing else (well I do own the plot but I really don't give a rats behind if someone wants to copy it...not that much of a plot anyways). _Cinderella _belongs to The Brothers Grimm (or possibly Disney, I'm not really sure anymore) and the song _Bippity Boppity Boo _belongs to Disney...I think...I own neither okay? Let's just go with that.

**A/N: **I am so totally making this story up as I go along which is kind of drawing out my updates. I write about a paragraph per night and in a four page chapter it takes a while and I'm balancing this with another story I'm writing (CSI: NY). I hope y'all are enjoying what I've got so far!

**A/N 2: **Okay class let's say it together – FLUFF – that's right...F-L-U-F-F. As an adjective it is FLUFFY as in "This chapter is going to be very fluffy". I'll try to avoid saccharine sweetness but I have the strongest urge to write fluff!

**A/N3: **Oh muse where art thou?

* * *

Dan relaxed as Zoe's hand rubbed distracted circles on his back. He leaned back onto the bed and pulled her with him, holding her close. His hands moved through her hair gently, lulling her into relaxing and temporarily relieving her fears about Taylor.

"Dan?" she asked quietly. He looked into her eyes and Zoe slowly moved so her face was level with his, her eyes flickering back and forth from his mouth to his eyes as she moved in to kiss him. Dan's hands moved to cup her face as her lips met his, sending waves of pleasure through her body. Zoe shifted her body so she was straddling his thighs, her hands roaming across his chest, whimpering softly in disappointment when she felt his hands leave her face and hair. She frowned as he pulled away from her, "What's wrong Dan?" she reached out and caressed his cheek.

"Zoe..." Dan sighed as he looked into her eyes, "you're upset, I'm upset, do you really think we should be doing this?" he gestured to their somewhat compromising position. Zoe stiffened and moved off of him and returned to her side of the bed, pulling the blankets up around her and keeping her back to Dan to hide the tears of rejection that flowed down her face. "Zoe? Oh honey don't be upset..." Dan reached out and rubbed her back, feeling her muscles tense under his touch. He thought he detected some other kind of movement from her and it took him a moment to realize that her shoulders were shaking with quiet sobs. He tried to move closer to her, only to have her get up from bed and walk out of the room. Zoe descended the stairs softly before collapsing to the couch and allowing the sobs to overtake her. She heard the stairs protest softly as Dan walked down them, making his way over to her and wrapping a blanket around her shoulders before sitting down beside her with his arms around her.

"Just stop pretending Dan. You don't want me...I get it. You don't have to pretend like this is just bad timing and when it all blows over you'll be here waiting to love me." Zoe spoke through her tears, trying to pull away from Dan as he whispered into her ear,

"Oh Zoe...how could you ever think I don't want you? Not only are you absolutely gorgeous, you have an incredible personality and a big heart, I mean not many people would forgive me for what I did. I love you Zoe, and I just want you to be absolutely sure that you aren't going to regret anything we do because I don't think I could live with myself if I knew I'd forced you to do something you didn't want to. You're emotional right now...I need to be sure that you won't hate me in the morning."

"How do you always know just what to say?" Zoe smiled at him as he gently wiped the tears from her face.

"C'mon, let's get back to bed," Dan stood up and offered her his hand, and they walked back up the stairs, Zoe pausing to check on each of the kids before joining Dan in her room.

"Dan," Zoe took a deep breath to steady herself as she walked across the floor to join him on the bed. "I won't regret anything in the morning," her voice dropped to an almost inaudible whisper, and she refused to meet Dan's eyes. She jumped slightly when she felt his hand under her chin, tilting her face up so he could look into her eyes,

"You're sure Zoe?" She smiled and nodded as he leaned in to kiss her.

* * *

Zoe awoke to Dan's hand drawing lazy patterns on her bare back and her body pressed cozily against his. She tilted her head and managed to glimpse the clock, groaning softly when she saw the bright LED light glowing _2:41am_. Dan woke as he felt her stir "Hey beautiful, what're you doing awake?" he kissed the top of her head. Zoe's breath caught in her throat at the realization that she was naked, as was Dan and she was sore in some places that she hadn't been sore in for quite a while. She willed herself to relax, she loved Dan, and he loved her, she hadn't done anything wrong. She felt Dan's hand still on her back and she realized that her lack of response was making him nervous.

"Hey yourself," she whispered, scooting up to kiss him before snuggling back under the blanket.

"You're regretting this already, aren't you." It was more of a statement than a question.

"No! Never...It's just going to take some getting used to," Zoe tilted her head to look at him, her fingers tracing patterns on his chest.

"I love you, Zoe. Never doubt that."

"Show me..."

* * *

Zoe yawned and stretched out, wincing at her sore muscles. She lifted her head off of Dan's chest long enough to check the time, 8:58am, before nestling back against him as he stirred beneath her. "Hey," she whispered, "kids are gonna be up soon."As if on cue there was the distinct sounds of a child's footfalls descending the stairs followed by two more sets. Zoe yawned once again before rolling out of the bed, pausing to scoop her pyjamas up off the floor and slip back into them. She turned to find Dan gazing at her appreciatively, rolling her eyes she threw his pyjamas at him, "Up and dressed mister, I don't want the kids coming in and finding you like this," she gestured to the sheet barely covering his body. As he rose and dressed Zoe caught herself staring at him and butterflies made their way into her stomach, flitting around nervously. She had no time to contemplate the sudden appearance of the butterflies because at that moment she heard a crash from the kitchen and she raced down the stairs, Dan following on her heels. The couple burst into the kitchen finding the three kids standing in a cloud of pancake mix, a shattered mixing bowl on the floor.

"Sorry Aunt Zoe," Cliff apologised, "we just wanted to make breakfast."

"We'll clean it up," Taylor volunteered.

"That's okay, I don't want you guys getting hurt by the glass, go watch some tv and I'll clean this up and make breakfast." The three children traipsed out of the kitchen, Hannah scooping up a book from the couch and asking Dan,

"Mr. Lennox will you read a story with me?"

"I've gotta help your Aunt Zoe clean up Hannah, how about after breakfast?" Hannah's face fell, a small pout forming until Zoe said,

"It's okay Dan, you've done _so _much already, I'll do this." Zoe smiled at his reaction to the slight stress she placed on her words. Dan followed Hannah to the table and pulled her up into his lap.

"So kiddo what are we reading?" Dan leaned over the little girl's shoulder to see the title of the book, _A Compilation of the Very Best Fables and Fairytales_.

"Can you read me _Cinderella_? It's my favourite!" Hannah opened the book to the correct page without even looking, the spine cracked from repeated readings.

"I haven't read this story since I was little," Dan smiled at her and began to read, "_Once upon a time..._" Zoe moved around the kitchen with practised ease, quickly cleaning up the mess and starting breakfast. She giggled when she caught herself humming _Bippity Boppity Boo _knowing she had definitely spent too many hours watching Disney movies. She was nearly finished preparing breakfast when she heard Hannah say,

"_And they all lived happily ever after. The End. _Mr. Lennox?" Hannah asked as she shut the book, "What does '_and they all lived happily ever after' _really mean?"

"Well Hannah I think it means that they were a happy family for the rest of their lives and no matter what hard things they had to face they always stuck together." Dan looked at Zoe as he spoke, watching a tear slip down her cheek, wanting more than anything to kiss all her pain away.

"Do you think I'll ever have a happily ever after?" Dan hugged her tightly, the innocence of a child never failed to amaze him.

"You know Hannah, I think you will. You'll find your prince and he'll love you more than anything in the whole world and you'll get that happily ever after." Dan repressed the tears he felt building.

"Are you Aunt Zoe's happily ever after? I thought Mr. Morales was but then he left and you've always been here. I think I'd like you to be Aunt Zoe's happily ever after, you'd make a good prince." Zoe choked on the water she was drinking and waited for Dan to answer.

"You know kiddo, I would really love to be her happily ever after, if she'll be mine," the glass slipped from Zoe's fingers, crashing into the sink.

"Breakfast is ready," she whispered, eyes down, picking the glass shards out of the sink as Dan sent Hannah to get her brother and sister. Zoe shivered involuntarily when she felt Dan's hand on her back.

"No matter how cliched it is, I mean that Zoe. I know every little girl dreams of a fairytale life and I want to give it to you, as best I can," Dan murmured into her ear.

"There's no such thing as a fairytale," her voice lacked conviction.

"Of course there is Zoe. This may not be the textbook fairytale romance and life, but it's _our _fairytale," his fingers trailed up and down her back, sending tremors coursing through her body. Zoe turned to face him, her back against the counter and his body dangerously close to hers. Tears glistened in her eyes as he pressed a kiss to her forehead before pulling back to reveal the same mixture of fear and love in his eyes that was mirrored in hers. She felt one of Dan's hands slide between her back and the counter, cushioning the sharp edge. It was at that moment that Zoe felt what it was like to be totally and completely in love with someone. The simplest gestures now held so much more meaning, his one hand behind her back and the other reaching up to gently brush a stray curl away from her face, pausing slightly to cup her cheek. Zoe allowed a secretive smile to pass across her lips and her head to tilt just slightly to prolong the contact of his hand on her cheek. She closed her eyes and raised herself up on her toes, making it abundantly clear to Dan what she wanted. Dan's hand moved from her cheek around to the back of her neck as he stooped slightly to meet her lips. Neither heard the kids quietly enter the kitchen and take their breakfast to eat in front of the tv to keep from interrupting the adults. Dan pulled back from Zoe, feeling her rise further on to her toes to prolong the kiss as long as she could. "Breakfast is getting cold," Dan whispered breathlessly.

"Don't care," Zoe replied, reaching behind his neck and linking her fingers before pulling him back down to her lips. Their kisses we slow and languorous, drawing the breath from both, though neither cared and had they been able to go without breathing they may have never stopped. These were the kind of kisses that true love made, ones that not only aroused the body but the soul as well, intertwining the spirits of two people through a meeting of lips. "Dan?" Zoe whispered breathlessly as they broke, foreheads resting against each others, "I've never felt so much in a kiss before." Secretly she was worried that Dan could make any woman feel like she felt.

"Me neither Zo. I lo-..."

"Don't say it Dan, not unless you really mean it," as much as his presence comforted and relaxed her, there was still a part if her that was waiting to wake up from this to find it was all a dream.

"I know you worry that I'm a practised smooth-talker who can get any woman to do whatever he wants but around you Zoe, I'm just me. There's no smoke and mirrors Zoe, this is true, everything I have ever wanted and wished for I've found in you. I don't want to be without you anymore. I love you and I will never, ever lie to you Zoe and for the rest of my life I am going to do everything I can to keep a smile on your face." Dan caressed her cheek as he spoke, sending chills up and down her spine. He leaned in to kiss her again when they heard a knock at the door.

"Rebecca," they said in unison, looking down at their state of undress before being summoned by Hannah.

"Aunt Zoe! Mr. Lennox! Rebecca is here!" the young girl yelled.

"Hannah," Taylor hissed, "I said not to interrupt them!" Rebecca raised an eyebrow at Taylor's comment but she understood as soon as the couple exited the kitchen. They were the only two in the family still in pyjamas, lips swollen from kisses, hair messed, cheeks flushed, all telltale signs that Rebecca read easily. She rolled her eyes at her brother, whispering as she passed him on her way in,

"You had to jump her in the kitchen? Classy Dan, what are you sixteen?" sarcasm dripped from her words but Dan could hear the amusement in her voice. "Good morning, Zoe," she smiled knowingly at her, drawing a deeper pink blush into Zoe's cheeks. Rebecca giggled girlishly, adjusting Katy on her hip as she watched the two flustered adults attempt to regain their dignity. "Why don't you two go get dressed, I'll just stay down here with the kids."

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**A/N 4: **Damn there's a lot of author notes in this chapter. I seem to have run out of steam...I feel like I need a fresh start on a new chapter so yeah I realize you don't care and probably won't read this but oh well. 


	15. Guilty Conscience

**Disclaimer: **I own a cat, more pairs of shoes than any one person could possibly need and an extremely overactive and inventive imagination. If you recognise it, I probably don't own it.

**A/N: **Well I've been slacking off on the updates and for that I apologise. I'm a procrastinator at heart so things get done very slowly. Updates come faster when I should be doing something else, like schoolwork, when they are replacing sleep (which is what they do in the summertime) they take longer. Thanks to those who've reviewed, I really appreciate it! (Honestly I do, it makes me want to write more!)

**A/N 2: **I apologise if this seems kind of disjointed. I've tried to blend things together as well as possible. I've started writing while I'm at work (summer job cut grass and pick litter in parks, not my career but good $$ for school.) Anyways I don't actually write on paper, I write it in my head, dialogue and all, as I work so I hope it turns out okay!

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**_SPOILER ALERT! _**

_**there are spoilers (well actually there is one spoiler...) for "Zoe's Phoney Matrimony" in this chapter!**_

**The episode "Zoe's Phoney Matrimony" would fit in in the chapter when they get home (it's sad that I don't remember what chapter that was and I'm too lazy to look it up)

* * *

**

Rebecca glanced over at Taylor as Zoe and Dan made their way upstairs, she rolled her eyes to the younger girl, winning herself a bright smile from Taylor. "Well let's go sit down shall we? I wanted to talk to all of you about dinner last night," Taylor turned and headed into the living room followed by Rebecca, who heard Hannah whisper to Cliff from behind her,

"Uh oh, we're in trouble now!" Rebecca turned and smiled,

"You're not in trouble Hannah," she reassured, waiting while the kids situated themselves onto various pieces of furniture before she began. It was a speech she'd rehearsed the night before, worried that without a script she wouldn't be able to make it through. "I wanted to apologise to all of you for the way I behaved at dinner yesterday. Hannah, you asked me a perfectly legitimate question and I closed down. It's inexcusable and I hope you all can forgive me," the three children nodded in unison as they heard a shower start upstairs. "I suppose you all want to know why I reacted the way I did when you mentioned Katy's father," again three heads bobbed affirmation, Rebecca forced herself to take a deep breath before beginning the sordid tale, "Well when I first found out I was pregnant with Katy I was surprised, she wasn't planned, not that I'd give her up for the world. My fiancé at the time didn't believe that Katy was his and he got very angry with me and he hit me. It only happened once and I walked out on him," Rebecca took a shaky breath, she'd left out some of the details that she thought wouldn't be appropriate for the kids. Not even Dan knew the exact specifics of her last night with Tom.

"Rebecca?" Cliff said, "Thanks for being honest with us, not many adults will do that they want to shelter us from stuff so we find out about it the hard way, by seeing it first hand or something. It's much better to hear about you standing up to him and walking out then having to see someone get beat up 'cause they don't know any better."

* * *

Dan came out of the bathroom to find Zoe seated on the edge of the bed, staring at her hands. As he got closer he could hear her quiet sobs and see the tears falling into her lap. He knelt before her and took her hands in his, "Zoe?" she looked up at him, the pain in her eyes made him hurt too, "Oh Zoe," he sighed, pulling her into his arms. "It'll be okay Zoe, we'll get through this, we'll help Taylor get through this," he rubbed her back gently as the sobs subsided into the occasional hiccup and then disappeared completely. She didn't move from his embrace, nor did he move to release her, content to give her silent strength. He felt her breathe deeply, trying vainly to calm her nerves before she had to return to all of the problems that awaited her. Dan leaned back so he could see her face, gently brushing the curls out of the way before leaning down to place a long, sweet kiss on her lips. He felt her relax almost immediately and wished he could continue kissing her until everything was resolved. Zoe broke the kiss and whispered,

"Thank you," softly to Dan.

"Any time sweetheart. All you have to do is ask," he replied, standing before reaching for her hand and bringing her to her feet. The couple proceeded to the livingroom to find Cliff heading out the door to get his ride to practice and Hannah already gone to her Firefly meeting. Taylor and Rebecca sat on chairs talking in hushed tones, stopping when the other adults approached.

"Well now that you two are presentable, shall we get started?" Rebecca asked as Dan and Zoe sank down to the couch, fingers intertwined. "Okay so Taylor is fine with you being here Dan, it's actually a good idea because the more pairs of eyes we have on her the better. So here's the deal; what Taylor has is similar to an addiction, it is going to be very difficult for her to stop on her own. She's close to the age where anti-anxiety meds are an option but I'd rather not resort to those unless it's absolutely necessary, I'm sure Dan remembers how I was when I first started on them."

"Yeah constant PMS," Dan retorted, trying to lighten the mood a little. Rebecca smirked,

"Yes some of the medications have adverse effects and they take about six weeks to start working and that's after a slow build-up to a decent dose."

"Wait," Taylor interrupted, "Why were you on medication?"

"Dan didn't tell you?" she asked, Zoe and Taylor shaking their heads, "Well when I was nineteen I was diagnosed with trich. After three different doctors and as many types of drugs I was finally, well, cured if you want to put it that way. That's one of the reasons Dan called me, an inside look at a recovering trich patient."

"So that's what you meant when you said you remembered her going through something like this when she was younger...I never really thought about that until now," Zoe said to Dan. He released her hand and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her trembling body closer to him.

"I'll tell you now that this will not be easy for her to beat and she will have to at least unconsciously fight it for the rest of her life. Trich is similar to anorexia in that she will always struggle with it but with a supportive family she can get through it. Zoe, you and Taylor need to discuss whether it would be a good idea to tell Hannah and Cliff what is going on or if it's best they don't know." Rebecca turned to address Taylor, "Okay so for treatment, I'm going to put you on a low dose potassium supplement, there are some recent studies out that show a correlation between trich and potassium levels. I'm going to monitor you very closely for the first few weeks on it because high levels of potassium can cause heart problems so we'll have to be careful. The dosage is low so there shouldn't be any problems but it's always best to air on the side of caution. I'd like to continue having sessions with you over the next few weeks, about once a week but we can do more if you feel you need them." Rebecca handed Taylor a shopping bag, "This bag is what sufferers call a 'Bag of Trichs.' It's a bunch of things that will help you keep your hands busy once we pin down your triggers. There's some info I printed off the net last night that you and your aunt and anyone else can read if you feel so inclined." Rebecca returned her attention to Zoe and Dan, "You two, and Hannah and Cliff if you tell them, are charged with the task of keeping an eye on Taylor. If you see her hand gravitate towards her head, point it out to her, much of her pulling is done subconsciously. Okay that about does it," she checked her clipboard quickly, shifting Katy in her arms to free a hand, "Is there anything any of you can think of that you want to ask me about?"

"Can I go now? My friends are gonna be here soon to get me," Taylor asked.

"Yeah sure Tay, be home by six," Zoe replied, watching her young niece trudge up the stairs.

"Zoe?" Dan said softly in her ear, "I have to go run some errands and I should probably go home for a bit. Do you want me to come back later? I'll bring dinner."

"Okay," she replied, Dan noticed that she seemed distracted but decided not to push her to talk right then. He leaned in and kissed her forehead tenderly, "See ya soon." Zoe turned back to face Rebecca as the door shut behind Dan and Taylor, who had raced down the stairs at her friends insistent honking. Rebecca was sitting cross-legged on the couch, feeding Katy and looking at Zoe expectantly. "What?" Zoe asked.

"What is it you want to talk about?" Rebecca looked down at Katy and smiled as the baby's eyes slipped closed before turning her attention back to Zoe.

"What do you mean? I didn't say I wanted to talk about anything," Zoe was confused, _"Was I really that obvious?_"

"Zoe, I get paid to read people and I do it well. There's obviously something on your mind, wanna talk about it? Not doctor to patient, woman to woman." Zoe nodded resignedly, _"Shoulda known she'd read me like a book."_

"I feel...I feel guilty about something I did recently," Zoe paused, "God I feel like I'm confessing my sins," she joked, trying to calm her nerves. Rebecca smiled encouragement and Zoe continued, "Ever since Sue, my sister, died I've been trying to set a good example for the kids. I left my wild child days behind me in Vegas, or at least I tried to. For a while I dated one of Cliff's teachers, he asked me to go away for a weekend and at first I said yes but then I worried about what kind of example that would be for the kids, Taylor especially. I changed my mind and then a while later he asked me to marry him. I turned him down," Zoe paused to take a breath, "This is leading somewhere, I promise. Then Dan and I go to Catalina and things heat up between us and after we get back we go on the other assignment where we actually got **_married_**," Zoe absently fingered the rings still in place on her left hand, "And we still haven't really dated. It was all such a whirlwind courtship and everything has been so crazy but we didn't consummate the marriage because I wasn't ready. Then last night I was really upset and so was Dan and we finally made love together and it was possibly the most incredible experience of my life. The only problem is, now I feel like I did something wrong by looking for comfort in his arms like that. Don't get me wrong, I don't regret it for a second but there's still a nagging guilt..." Zoe sighed, it felt good to pour her heart out to another woman.

"So you feel like you shouldn't be able to seek solace in Dan's arms because Taylor doesn't have an easy escape like that," Zoe nodded, "Well hon I have to tell you, what you did last night was perfectly acceptable. You needed an escape, a few hours where the problems of your world just fade away. You're a woman, you have needs and when you are as in love as you and my brother are there is nothing wrong with going to him for comfort. Taylor will need an escape, it's something I'm going to talk to her about in our sessions, I've got some recommendations of some activities she might enjoy." Rebecca's cell phone rang at that moment, the sweet melody of Moonlight Sonata calling her attention to it, "Sorry Zoe I have to take this," she said, looking up from the caller display.

"That's okay, I'll just be in the kitchen," Zoe moved from the couch, feeling much better now that she had talked to Rebecca. She worked quietly, overhearing the other woman's conversation.

"Hey hon, how are you?...I'm good, Katy's just having a nap...No, not yet...No Mike. Please don't. You know the danger I'm in just being here with Kat, if you were here too it'll be too obvious!...Michael he'll find out...Mike please..." Rebecca let out an exasperated sigh, "Fine...No I will not be happy about this...We'll talk about it later...No Mike we are not having this discussion now...Goodbye." Rebecca ended the call with an furious stab to her cell phone before she threw it angrily at the ground, "Fuck, Mike! What is wrong with you!" she seethed, trying to keep her voice low, though she sensed Zoe had probably heard much of what was said anyways.

"Rebecca?" Zoe's voice drifted from the kitchen doorway, "Wanna talk about it?"

"No," Rebecca replied bluntly, "I need some time to wrap my own head around this. I have to talk to Dan about this anyways so later okay?" She noticed the slight hurt look on Zoe's face, "I really appreciate the offer but I'm kind of between a rock and a hard place at the moment. It's just going to take me a while to get it all sorted out." Zoe nodded her understanding and the two women parted ways for the day, with Rebecca promising to return at six for dinner with the family.


	16. A HalfStep Forward

**Disclaimer: **I bought more shoes but I still don't own much that's in this story...

**A/N:** Hmm...this has to be a first...I have no author notes for this chapter yet. Ooh I scored a goal in my lacrosse game the other night! Woot! Woot! Okay so that was pointless but hey, most of my author notes are.

**Apology: _I'm slow I know...so very sorry!

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_**

Dan knocked on the door later that day, his arms loaded with take-out from Zoe's favourite Italian restaurant, Alessandro's. He raised an eyebrow slightly when his sister answered the door, a sombre expression gracing her normally happy face. "Becca? Is everything okay?" Dan asked as he walked past her into the house.

"No," she replied, "but we'll talk about it later." Rebecca took a bag from Dan's hands and walked towards the kitchen. The family ate dinner with all three children talking happily about their activities from the day while Rebecca sat in a contemplative silence. Later in the evening when all of the children had finally gone to bed the three adults sat in the living room, Katy sleeping in her playpen near Rebecca's chair. Rebecca took a deep breath before breaking the silence,

"Dan I've never told you the whole truth about Katy, Tom and my not-so-alleged affair."

"Not-so-alleged? You really did have an affair? Rebecca! How could you!" Dan's voice was low but the anger and hurt was still evident.

"It's not what you think Dan. Just after we moved in together, me and Tom, things started to get really tense. We fought all the time and one night I ran out on him, ended up at a bar where Mike found me," Rebecca explained.

"Mike Montgomery? Tom's best friend?" Dan asked, Zoe squeezing his hand to offer comfort.

"Yes. When he got there I'd already gone through three drinks. He came and sat down with me and started drinking with me. We got drunk...really, really drunk and we ended up going back to his place. He kept asking me if I was sure and I was. I wasn't getting what I needed, physically or emotionally, from Tom so I had to turn somewhere. I know it was stupid but it happened and that night I conceived Katy, she's Mikes's, we did a DNA test to be sure. Why do you think Kathryn's middle name is Michaela? Coincidence? No I named her for Mike because in my heart I knew she was his from the moment I took that pregnancy test. There's a reason I'm telling you all this now Dan, Mike and I are together, engaged actually, and he's insisted on flying down here to be with Katy and I. He thinks it's dangerous for us to be close to Tom with no protection and yes he's probably right but I feel like his being here might make things worse. It would be a hell of a lot easier for Tom to find all three of us that if it was just me and Katy. I hope that he's not going to hunt us down but I wanted you to know so you can look out for him, especially after Mike gets here." Rebecca sighed and shut her eyes to hold back tears. As Dan and Zoe processed what Rebecca had just told them, the tears began to fall silently from Rebecca, shame, guilt and fear all mixing into one intense emotion.

"God Rebecca..."Dan sighed, "You were always the good one...the little princess."

"Yeah well it looks like I fucked that up royally now doesn't it?" Rebecca replied, tears still trailing quietly down her cheeks. Rebecca's cell phone rang, the caller display prominently displaying her fiancé's name. She flipped the phone open,

"Hey," she whispered.

"_Hey honey...I'm sorry about earlier,"_ hearing Mike's voice calmed Rebecca.

"Me too," she replied, trying to hide the tears in her voice.

"_Baby have you been crying?" _

"Yeah. I – I told Dan."

"_And?"_

"I dunno I don't think it's really sunk in for him yet. I mean it's not every day you find out your little sister is a slut who cheated on her fiancé in a drunken one night stand," Dan's eyes found Rebecca's at that comment.

"You're not a slut Rebecca. You made a mistake, it happens, I should know." Dan told her. He had accepted what his sister had told him, there was nothing else he could do. Rebecca smiled, happy that Dan understood.

"_So have you told him we were thinking_ _of moving_ _back to Chicago? I just found out that Tom is in prison for manslaughter and won't be getting out anytime soon."_

"Really? Oh God Mike that's awesome! How'd you find that out?"

"_I called a few friends...well a few of your friends," _Mike laughed, having a fiancée that worked in law enforcement was helpful now and then. _"My plane gets in on Wednesday, so we can talk then. I've gotta run now though, give Kat a big kiss for me, love you baby, bye."_

"Bye," Rebecca flicked her phone shut and dropped it into the diaper bag. "Mike'll be here on Wednesday. I'd like to have another session with Taylor before then," finding out that her former flame was behind bars for manslaughter had shaken Rebecca to the core, how far would he have gone with her? Rebecca's hands shook almost imperceptibly as she packed up Katy for the trip to Dan's house. As they walked to the door, Rebecca heard Zoe call to Dan.

"Dan?" Zoe's voice shook slightly.

"Yeah Zo?" Dan turned to look at her as Rebecca disappeared out the door.

"Move in with me...with us?" the words came in a rush. It had been a spur of the moment decision but everything felt so right. Dan's jaw dropped and he was at a loss for words, they were married, technically, but living together? That was a huge step!

"Zoe have you talked to the kids about this?" he definitely didn't want to upset the kids, they were important to Zoe and so they were important to him. She shook her head, already regretting not thinking this through. "Well why don't you talk to them tomorrow and see what they think and then we'll decide, okay?" Zoe sighed, slumping her shoulders and nodding. "Hey," Dan whispered, his hand was beneath her chin, tilting her face to his. "I love you Zoe, and I love the kids. I just want to be sure that everyone is okay with the decision we make." Zoe smiled at him, rising onto her toes to give him a gentle goodnight kiss.

"See you tomorrow."

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**A/N2: **It's short, I know but I've been really busy the last like two months so I haven't had a lot of time to write and this just seemed like a good place to stop (don't ask how those two things are related, I don't know). Anyways, reviews make me want to write more but it might be a while before I do another update (hopefully not too long!) 


	17. Moving

**Disclaimer: **Rebecca and Kathryn Lennox and Michael Montgomery are my creations – I stole everyone else.

**A/N: **Back to university! Ahh! I have an advanced composition class so that should be fun...anyways enjoy this installment! (I like exclamation points!)

**A/N2: **My stories have no sense of time...has anyone else noticed that?

* * *

Zoe sat facing the kids, awaiting a response from the three about the idea of Dan moving in. Finally Taylor spoke,

"I think it's an okay idea. I mean it'll take some getting used to but Dan's a good guy and you obviously like him so why not?" Cliff piped up when Taylor finished,

"It'd be nice to not be the only guy in the house!" he joked. Finally Hannah, who had been carefully mulling over the idea spoke.

"It would be like having a daddy. We'd be a normal family!" she smiled in wonder at the idea. Zoe stood from her seat and hugged all of the kids.

"I love you guys so much!" she whispered fiercely.

"We love you too aunt Zoe!" Hannah proclaimed from her aunt's embrace.

"And you love Dan and he loves you," Taylor added.

"And Dan loves all three of you," Zoe smiled and released her hold on the kids, feeling as though an immense weight had been lifted off her shoulders. The youngest two children ran upstairs to get ready for their busy day and Taylor went to clean up the breakfast dishes. Zoe remained in the living room for a moment, silently reflecting on how everything seemed to be going right for once. She was startled out of her moment of solitude by the shrill ringing of the telephone, "Hello?" she answered on the second ring.

"Morning Zoe, it's Rebecca. I was wondering if I could have another session with Taylor this afternoon?"

"Let me check with her," Zoe covered the mouthpiece of the phone to muffle her voice, "Tay Rebecca wants to have another session with you this afternoon."

"Okay!" Taylor called back. Zoe raised the phone back to her ear,

"She says that's fine."

"So I heard," Rebecca laughed, "I'll probably be over around two, okay?"

"Sure that's fine."

"Alright, see you then Zoe."

"Bye."

* * *

Rebecca knocked on Zoe's door at 2:13pm, Katy and Dan in tow. "I'll get it," Hannah called from inside the house before yanking the door open. "Aunt Zoe! Mr. Lennox and Rebecca are here!" hollered the excited young girl.

"Okay Hannah, chill," Zoe admonished, trying unsuccessfully to hide a grin at her niece's boundless energy. Rebecca and Dan entered the house, greeting Taylor and Cliff as they did so.

"We can go to my room if you want Rebecca," Taylor said. Rebecca nodded and handed Katy to Dan.

"Be good for your uncle Dan, Kat. Mommy will be back later," Rebecca tickled the babies stomach, winning herself a wide grin. Taylor began to head up the stairs, followed closely by Rebecca as the rest of the family went into the livingroom. Taylor's hands shook as she opened the door to her room, nervous about what would happen during the session. Taylor sank down onto her bed and Rebecca pulled a chair closer, clipboard appearing in her hands seemingly out of thin air. "So how have things been going?" Rebecca asked.

"About the same...I-I'm still pulling _it _out and sometimes I don't even notice! I just look down and there's a pile of h-hair in front of me. That's the scary part...how am I gonna stop if I don't even know when I'm doin' it?" Taylor spoke quietly, distinct contrast between her and her younger sister.

"Well one of the goals of these sessions will be to increase your awareness, make you notice when you start pulling and hopefully find you ways to stop. Do you notice certain times now when you do it? Like maybe when you're watching tv or doing homework or even sitting in class?"

"Not in class! Someone might notice!" Taylor looked embarrassed, "But yeah, watching tv or reading and doing homework."

"What are you thinking when you're doing it? Are you stressed, calm, anxious, something else?"

"Well when I notice I'm usually thinking about something stressful, like school or boys or," Taylor stopped, a bright red blush spreading through her cheeks.

"Or what?" Rebecca asked, curious what had caused Taylor's reaction.

"Or sex...and being like the only virgin in my class," Taylor whispered, her blush deepening to a crimson. "It used to be thinking about my mom...when she first died. I didn't talk about it a whole lot and whenever I thought of her I'd start to pull at my hair and then I guess it just got worse." Rebecca stayed silent a moment, writing on her clipboard;

_- initial trigger: mother's death_

_- current triggers: stress (school, being a virgin), thoughts of sex, possibly boredom (times when it's not noticed)_

_- most frequent pull times: homework, tv, reading - alone times_

"Rebecca...can I ask you something...uh...personal?" Taylor asked shyly. Now that she had begun talking about sex, it had piqued her curiosity.

"Sure," Rebecca smiled reassuringly, "that's what I'm here for...well kind of."

"Well," Taylor started, blushing furiously, "How old were you when you...ya know...lost _it_?"

"Sixteen. I've regretted it ever since," Rebecca answered honestly, pulling Taylor's hand away from her head and dropping a koosh ball into it. "Play with this while we talk about uncomfortable stuff okay?" Taylor nodded.

"How come you regret it?" Taylor continued.

"I was young and stupid. I thought I loved him and he loved me but it turns out he was just trying to get into my pants, which he unfortunately accomplished," Rebecca reflected, sighing softly as she thought of how naive she had once been. "I was lucky, actually. Sex ed wasn't exactly high on the priority list at my school and my parents were really conservative so I furthered my stupidity by having unprotected sex with him. I could have ended up pregnant or with and STD. Having sex with him is the one thing I would change if I ever had the opportunity to go back in time." Rebecca scribbled onto her clipboard,

_Session Two:_

_- talked about sex, answered a lot of questions, hopefully relieved some of the related stress._

Rebecca looked back at Taylor as she sensed another question coming on, noting that Taylor was pulling at the rubbery strands of the koosh ball. "What –,"Taylor paused, her hand drifting towards her head before she pulled it back down and began pulling on the koosh ball again, winning a smile of approval from Rebecca. "What does it feel like? The first time, I mean...a lot of girls say it hurts."

"My first time hurt...I know why now," Rebecca paused, rolling her eyes, "Voice of experience I suppose. But when you're with a partner who actually does love you then it is an _incredible _feeling," a flush rose into Rebecca's cheeks as she quickly banished steamy and unbidden thoughts of her fiancé. Taylor noticed and couldn't stop the question before it slipped out,

"Why are you blushing?" Rebecca's blush deepened to a crimson, the thoughts of her fiancé slipping back to her mind. Rebecca shut her eyes and breathed deeply to regain her composure.

"I...I was thinking about..." she sighed, "I was thinking about my fiancé. I miss him, being down here."

"Oh...I'm sorry. Maybe Mr. Lennox shouldn't have called you...I didn't mean to be a burden," Taylor looked away from Rebecca, glancing back up when she felt a hand on her arm.

"You are **not **a burden Taylor. I miss my fiancé but I'm here to help you because I _want _to be. Okay?" Rebecca smiled at her.

"Yeah," Taylor replied, smiling back.

"Okay that'll about do it for today's session. I want you to keep the koosh ball with you all the time, especially when you know you'll be stressed or bored. Rebecca scrawled her cell phone number onto the back of a business card, "Call me if you need anything, even if it's just to talk, that's what I'm here for. I don't expect you to be perfect at not pulling right away, but trying is a big step okay?" Taylor nodded, "You have any more questions right now?" Taylor shook her head and rose from the bed, reaching to Rebecca for a hug.

"Thanks," she whispered.

"Any time Taylor," Rebecca replied. They broke the hug and headed downstairs.

As the pair reached the bottom of the stairs Dan came over and pulled his baby sister into a hug, "Zoe and I are moving in together," he told her. Rebecca hugged him back tightly,

"Mike and I are moving down here," she let the secret slip. Dan released her,

"Really? What about..." he dropped his voice, "what about Tom?" Rebecca swallowed hard,

"He's in prison...he killed someone," tears glistened in her eyes, the terror of her last days with Tom coming back to haunt her. Dan pulled her close, shutting his eyes as the nightmares he'd had cam back.

"Love you sis," he whispered before releasing her.

"Love you too bro."

**TBC**


	18. Hot

**Disclaimer: **Show's still cancelled and I still own nothin'

**A/N: **Joely Fisher (Zoe) is gonna be on Desperate Housewives this season...that could be fun.

* * *

Zoe lay in Dan's arms Tuesday night, no longer feeling guilty about sleeping with him and accepting the comfort he offered. His fingers gently stroked her back and he placed light kisses in her hair. She'd discovered the first time that they made love that Dan loved to cuddle afterwards which made her very happy because she could definitely use his arms around her, it helped her sleep. Normally guys would just roll over and go to sleep but Dan would pull her close and whisper sweetly into her ear how beautiful she was and how much he loved her. Dan was officially moved in to her place now and while the routine with all the kids was still a little rocky it was getting better every day. Earlier that day he'd signed the lease of his place over to Rebecca, excited that his little sister was coming home to stay. Zoe felt her eyes closing, adrenaline slowly draining from her and soon she was asleep.

* * *

Rebecca was anxiously pacing the length of Zoe and Dan's living room at ten am, her fiancé having just called and told her that his plane had landed and he was on his way to her. Zoe and Dan were at work and Rebecca was babysitting a sick Hannah while impatiently waiting for Mike.

"Rebecca?" Hannah called from her room. Rebecca bounded up the stairs, happy to have something to do with her pent up energy.

"Hey kiddo," she greeted the pale little girl, "How're ya feelin'?"

"A little better...can I have a popsicle?" Hannah smiled at her hopefully.

Rebecca nodded, "I'll go get it. What kind do you want?"

"Banana!" Rebecca bounced down the stairs, pausing to check on Katy who was playing with a busy box in her playpen. She returned to Hannah's room with a popsicle and sat with the little girl, inventing fairytales for her until she fell asleep. Rebecca crept quietly back down the stairs just in time to see a rental car pull into the drive, her fiancé stepping out. She threw open the door and ran to him, jumping into his arms and kissing him with all the passion she could muster.

"Hey beautiful," he whispered into her hair, "Let's go inside okay?" Rebecca nodded and led him in the house, dutifully checking on Katy and Hannah, both of whom were asleep. When she returned to the livingroom Mike was sitting on the couch and when she went to walk past him he pulled her down into his lap, "Missed you baby."

"I missed you t--...oooh" Rebecca groaned as Mike began to kiss and suck her neck, "Mike we can't..." she breathed. He stopped, Rebecca was disappointed at the loss of contact but happy just to be with him. The couple sat on the couch for the rest of the day, checking on the two girls at regular intervals and catching up on their time apart.

* * *

Taylor and Cliff were the first to arrive home, "Hey Rebecca!" Cliff called before heading upstairs to do his homework.

"Hey Rebecca..." Taylor walked into the livingroom, looking questioningly at Mike.

"Taylor this is my fiancé Mike," Rebecca introduced them. Taylor shook his hand, awestruck at the handsome man before her. She turned to Rebecca,

"No wonder you missed him," Rebecca blushed and Taylor laughed as she made her way upstairs.

"Zoe and Dan should be home soon," Rebecca told Mike, "I can't wait for you to meet them!" As if on cue the front door opened and Zoe and Dan walked in. "Hey Zoe, Dan!" Rebecca greeted them, "This is Mike. Hannah's doing better, had a popsicle this morning and some chicken noodle soup a couple hours ago and she's been sleeping most of the day."

"Well why don't you two go back to my – your – place and get settled and come back for dinner around six? I'm cooking," Dan told them.

"Sounds like a good idea," Rebecca told him, kissing him quickly on the cheek and giving Zoe a hug as Mike packed Katy up.. "See you two later!" she called over her shoulder as she followed Mike to the car. Zoe ran upstairs to check on Hannah, who was still sleeping peacefully before joining Dan on the couch downstairs. She leaned into him, her head resting on his chest,

"I could get used to this," she said quietly.

"I already am," Dan replied, kissing the top of her head gently.

* * *

It was six-thirty and Rebecca and Mike hadn't returned for dinner like they said they would. Zoe had fed the kids and she and Dan were waiting on the other couple before they ate. They sat cuddled on the couch, the family watching a movie together. Their movie was interrupted when the phone rang and Taylor leaned over to pick it up.

"Hello?"

"Hi Taylor...is Dan there?" Rebecca asked.

"Here Mr. Lennox, it's Rebecca...she sounds upset."

"Dan..." tears were evident in Rebecca's voice, "Kathryn's running a fever of 106...we're at the hospital..." Rebecca broke down and handed her phone to Mike.

"Hi Dan. We're gonna be here a while, Kat's critical but stable for the moment, they've got her on a ventilator because she was having trouble breathing earlier" Dan could hear Mike soothing Rebecca as she cried against him, muffling her sobs with his chest.

"Okay Mike. Call back if you need anything," Dan told him.

"Thanks, bye," Dan hung up the phone, "Katy's in the hospital, she's got a fever."

"Is she okay?" Zoe asked, immediately thinking that Katy might have picked up whatever Hannah was getting over.

"Critical but stable..." Dan shut his eyes, he may have just met his little niece but she was like a child to him as much as Zoe's kids were.

"Tay can you guys go upstairs?" Zoe said. Taylor nodded and took her younger siblings upstairs. When they disappeared from view Dan pulled Zoe close to him, his body shaking. "Shh, it's okay Dan. The doctors will help her," Zoe whispered, praying she was right.

* * *

Three hours later Rebecca sat silently curled up on Mike's lap, waiting for Katy's test results. She stared at her precious baby girl, a tube down her throat to keep her breathing, an IV in her tiny arm to keep the fever from dehydrating her and wires attached to her little chest to monitor her heartbeat. Tears slid quietly down Rebecca's cheeks and she buried her head in Mike's shoulder, seeking comfort.

"Shh...it's gonna be okay honey," he whispered to her, pressing gentle kisses into her hair. Rebecca's head snapped up when the door opened.

"Ms. Lennox?" the doctor asked, all Rebecca could do was nod, wiping away her tears. "I'm Dr. Addison Shepard, it seems that Kathryn has developed a case of pneumonia." Rebecca's breath caught and she sobbed into Mike's chest, the doctor paused while Rebecca collected herself. "In the past few months has Kathryn had any colds?" Rebecca nodded,

"About two months ago, she had a runny nose and a low grade fever, it cleared up in about a week, I figured it was nothing."

"It's possible that it was an RSV infection which made her more susceptible to a lower respiratory infection like pneumonia. We're going to start her on amoxicillin..."

"No!" Rebecca interjected, "She's allergic to penicillin and amoxicillin." Mike rubbed her back gently, trying to calm her down.

"Okay," the doctor smiled, trying her best to calm Rebecca, "That's fine we can treat her with erythromycin and we're going to put her in isolation," the doctor turned to face an intern, "Dr. Stevens could you please give Kathryn a dose of EryPed?"

"Sure Dr. Shepard," the young blonde doctor said, swiftly exiting the room.

"Do you have any questions for me?" the doctor asked.

"Is she going to be okay?" Mike asked, Rebecca having again dissolved into tears against his shoulder.

"If everything goes as planned we should see an improvement over the next week. My main goal is to get her off the ventilator and breathing on her own."

Rebecca turned to look at the doctor, her voice shaking as she asked, "And if everything doesn't go as planned?"

"Then we change the treatment. Kathryn is in the best hands here, I'll do everything I can for her." Rebecca nodded and leaned into Mike, watching the younger doctor inject the first dose of medication into Katy's IV.

* * *

At four thirty the next morning Zoe was kneeling in her bathroom, trying her best to keep quiet as she emptied the contents of her stomach into the toilet. She jumped when Dan placed a hand on her shoulder,

"Zoe? Are you okay?" she took a breath and nodded, letting him lead her back to bed. Dan settled her into the bed before going to get a cool cloth from the bathroom. He sat on the edge of the bed and wiped her face gently as she fell back to sleep.

Across town Rebecca lay on a cot, staring at her baby in the crib, Mike's arms wrapped securely around her waist. She shifted against him, trying not to wake him as the tears threatened to spill again. Mike felt her move,

"Babe?" he questioned. Rebecca turned to face him, burying her face in his shoulder once again. "Shh...it's gonna be okay babe, Dr. Shepard is one of the best. Kathryn is exactly where she needs to be." He kissed her hair as she fell asleep, sending a silent prayer that Kathryn would be okay to anyone who was listening.

* * *

Two hours later Zoe was again kneeling on her bathroom floor, mind racing. She leaned back against the wall, trying to remember the last time she'd had her period. It hit her like a tonne of bricks, she was late. _What if...what if I'm pregnant!_

_

* * *

_

**A/N2: **Wow amI slow or what? Stupid university and having to do work haha. Anyways I hope you liked the update. Anyone recognize the doctors?


	19. Surprise

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing...well I do own some things, just not anything on these pages. Dr. Addison Shepard and Dr. Isobel "Izzy" Stevens are characters from "Grey's Anatomy" (and therefore not mine).

* * *

Zoe pushed the pregnancy test across the counter at the drugstore, avoiding the chipper cashier's eyes. She'd gotten the kids off to school and made sure Dan had gone to the hospital to visit Katy before heading to the store to find out if she really was pregnant. She paid and mumbled a thank you to the cashier, rushing out the door. She drove home on auto-pilot, not really paying attention to where she was going until she pulled into her own driveway. She dashed up the stairs, slamming the bathroom door shut behind her and ripping open the small box, pulling out instructions. She took the test and paced through the house impatiently, she was going to be late for work but she just didn't care. The timer she'd set broke the dense silence and she tore upstairs and took a deep breath before entering the bathroom. She walked slowly to the test and picked it up without looking at it, trying to prepare herself for the result. Slowly she bent her head to look at it, two stark blue lines jumping out against the white, she was pregnant. The test slipped from her fingers and clattered to the floor, _Now what the hell am I supposed to do!_

* * *

Dan walked into Katy's hospital room after being given a gown, mask and gloves. He found his sister sitting sullenly in a rocking chair, staring silently at her daughter. She looked away when Dan entered.

"Hey," he whispered, she gave him a sad smile, "Where's Mike?"

"Went to get me breakfast," she replied, eyes drifting back to Katy as she shifted in her sleep. Rebecca cringed when the baby coughed, squeezing her eyes shut until she stopped. Dan approached the bed, stroking his niece's fine hair gently,

"Hey munchkin," he whispered, "You keep fighting kiddo." He dropped a kiss to her forehead before turning back to Rebecca, "Hey why don't you go home and get some sleep, you look exhausted." Rebecca shook her head,

"I'm not leaving her Dan," she whispered, reaching for his hand. Dan pulled his little sister into a hug.

"She's gonna be okay Becca," he said softly. Dan kissed her cheek just as Mike reentered.

"Hey Dan," he greeted, "Here babe," he held out a cup of coffee and a bagel. Rebecca accepted them gratefully and moved so she could sit in the chair with him. He wrapped his arms around her waist as she ate breakfast and watched their baby girl silently. The young Dr. Stevens entered the room to give Katy her second round of antibiotics. She stopped on her way out,

"Ms. Lennox is there anything I can get you?" Rebecca shook her head, unable to speak for fear that she'd start crying again.

"Thank you though Dr. Stevens," Mike said, the doctor nodded kindly before leaving the room. Dan leaned down and kissed he top of his sister's head,

"Becca I have to go to work but promise me you'll call me later." Rebecca nodded silently, sipping her coffee. Dan left reluctantly turning on his cell phone once he reached the parking garage. His phone rang loudly, he answered it after seeing Zoe's name on the display. "Hey Zo, I'm on my way in right now."

"Dan?" she whispered, he could tell she was upset.

"Zoe what's wrong? Are you okay?"

"I need to talk to you Dan...I'm at home,"she hung up, not waiting for a response. He drove quickly to Zoe's house - his house now too - and racing inside.

"Zoe!" he called for her, "Honey where are you!" He turned to see her standing at the top of the stairs, eyes red and swollen from crying. "Zoe what is it? You're scaring me honey," she threw the pregnancy test to him before disappearing into her - their - bedroom. He stared at it for a few minutes before figuring out what it meant. He knocked softly at the bedroom door, "Sweetie can I come in?" he asked.

"Yes," came the tearfully whispered reply. He opened the door and crossed the room to sit on the bed with her.

"Does this mean what I think it means?" he asked. Zoe nodded,

"I'm so sorry Dan. It's all my fault. If you want to leave I'll understand. I should ha–," Dan placed a hand over mouth.

"Babe why would I want to leave?" he asked.

"I was stupid...I missed a dose of the pill. I should have made you wear a condom. It's my fault I should have told you." She started to cry again, curling into the fetal position with her back to Dan. She was surprised when she felt him lay down behind her and wrap his arms around her.

"Zoe this may have come as a surprise but it is by far the best surprise I've ever gotten. You are an amazing mother and we can do this together," he whispered in her ear. She turned to face him,

"Honest?" she asked almost childishly.

"Honest," he told her, his right palm coming to rest on her stomach as he looked into her eyes. She leaned up and kissed him, pouring all her love into the kiss. Dan leaned into the kiss, pushing her gently back onto the bed before beginning to slowly undress her. He removed her shirt and dropped it out of the bed, kissing his way down her abdomen. "Daddy needs to talk to your mommy now little one, go to sleep," he whispered against her stomach. Tears pricked at Zoe's eyes, a feeling of total love rushing over her as he undid her pants. She lifted her hips as he slid them down her legs, sighing softly as his fingers brushed against her thighs. Dan kissed her again, hands running over her body. She could feel him growing hard against her stomach as he slid her underwear off, followed quickly by her bra. His hands rested on her stomach, "We're going to have a baby," he whispered reverently. Zoe laid her hands on top of his, smiling when he moved to kiss her again.

* * *

Rebecca lay curled in Mike's arms on the stiff hospital cot, trying to ignore Katy's coughs. Dr. Shepard knocked softly on the door before entering to check on the baby. "Rebecca," Mike whispered softly, hating to wake her but knowing she would be mad if he didn't.

"Mmmm," she groaned.

"Babe, Dr. Shepard is here," Rebecca sat up quickly, pulling her hair back into a ponytail before going to speak to the doctor. Mike came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, offering silent support.

"Well she seems to be doing better, her fever has dropped to 104.6," Katy coughed, sending Rebecca burrowing into Mike's arms at the sound, tears trailing down her cheeks again. "I take it that bothers you," Dr. Shepard said, placing a hand on Rebecca's shoulder.

"Yeah," Mike told her, "She hates it, so do I."

"Well it could mean that she's trying to breathe around the tube. I'm going to leave it in until tomorrow, just to be safe, but EryPed is usually fast acting so hopefully she'll be able to breathe on her own soon." Rebecca turned to face the doctor,

"Thank you," she whispered. Addison smiled and gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze before walking out of the room.

* * *

At three am Rebecca was standing silently at her daughter's bedside, unable to sleep. Mike woke up,

"Rebecca? Honey?"

"I can't sleep," she whispered, her fingers gently stroking Katy's hair.

"Sweetie you need to sleep. You're exhausted. You won't be any good to Kathryn if you get sick too," he whispered, coming up behind her and leading her back to the cot. "Lay down on your stomach," he told her. Rebecca did what he asked, sighing softly as he began to work out the knots in her neck and back. He felt her tense under his hands every time Katy coughed but soon he managed to get her relaxed enough to sleep. He crawled into the cot with her and wrapped his arms protectively around her body, feeling her shift closer to him as he fell asleep.

* * *

Zoe knelt on the bathroom floor, emptying her stomach contents into the toilet again, trying not to wake Dan. She sighed when she felt him tie her hair back and then lay a cool cloth across the back of her neck.

"Sorry," she whispered.

"For what?" he asked her, rubbing her back gently.

"Waking you up."

"Zoe don't be silly,"

"I have a feeling this is gonna get real old, real fast," she told him. Dan encouraged her to lean back into his arms once she seemed to be finished.

"Zoe you are carrying our baby," his hands drifted to rest on her abdomen, "I am going to be there for you every time you get sick, for every doctor's appointment, for first words and first steps. I love you Zoe, I love your nieces and nephew and I already love this baby," he stroked her stomach as he spoke, silent tears slipping down Zoe's cheeks. "Let's go back to bed," he whispered against her cheek. She nodded and allowed him once again to lead her to the bed. As she lay down she realized just how exhausted she was, falling to sleep almost immediately. Dan smiled at her sleeping form and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead before crawling into bed with her and wrapping his arms around her.

* * *

Zoe walked sleepily down the stairs at seven am, the smell of coffee enticing her to go to the kitchen. Dan was standing at the stove making pancakes, a freshly brewed pot of coffee sitting on the counter. He grabbed her hand as she reached for the pot,

"Zoe coffee isn't good for unborn babies," he told her, smiling as she pouted. They both turned towards the door when they heard a gasp.

"Taylor!" Zoe exclaimed.

"You're...pregnant?" she asked, keeping her voice low. Zoe nodded,

"I just found out yesterday." Taylor ran to her aunt and threw her arms around her neck,

"That is so awesome!" Taylor squealed.

"I thought you might be upset..."

"Upset? No way! This is so cool!" she exclaimed, "Congratulations Dan," she said shyly.

"Thanks Taylor," he smiled at her. The phone rang and Hannah snatched it up in the living room,

"Mr...Uncle...ummm... Aunt Zoe what should I call him?" Hannah held out the phone to Dan while waiting for a response to her question.

"Rebecca?" he said as he took the phone from Hannah.

"_Yeah...the doctor just came by. Katy's fever is down to 101.1 and she's breathing on her own,"_ she told him.

"Oh thank God," Dan said, "When will she be released?"

"_Dr. Shepard says if she keeps responding this well we should be out in another four days or so." _

"That's great Becca. I'll be by after work to see her okay?"

"_Of course, oh and can you tell Taylor I'm going to call her later?"_

"Sure, love you sis," Dan said.

"_Love you too, see you later."_ They hung up and Dan turned his attention to Taylor,

"Rebecca is going to call you later okay?" Taylor nodded and Dan turned to Hannah, "What would you like to call me?"

"Can I call you uncle Dan?" she asked hopefully.

"You sure can," he smiled at her. Hannah returned to the livingroom to watch cartoons and Taylor asked,

"So when are you going to tell them?"

* * *

**TBC...**


End file.
